Real judgements, distilled
Court judgements broken down into the case type, how the decision played out, and the lesson worth remembering, with the full judgement available as a PDF.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1094
An older qualification must still satisfy the eligibility rules governing the appointment sought. Here, the certificate's early date did not secure reinstatement, and rejection of eligibility should not be confused with a conclusive finding that the certificate was forged.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1095
A party benefiting from a conditional stay must meet its deposit requirement or face enforcement. The additional ₹15 crore deposit secures the pending dispute; it does not settle the land's final compensation or amount to an immediate payment to the landowners.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1093
An alleged attempt to kill does not become a lesser offence simply because the victim avoided a fatal injury. Restoring this charge means the accusation must be tried; it does not establish that the accused is guilty.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1090
For the assessment in this case, assistance reducing ordinary manufacturing costs was taxable even though the government wanted to encourage industry. The purpose and actual operation of the particular subsidy mattered more than its general development label.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1091
Proof that someone caused a serious injury does not by itself prove the additional ingredients of robbery. A court can substitute a lesser offence supported by the evidence; the sentencing reduction here depended on Appa's particular circumstances.
Special Leave Petition (Civil) · 2026 INSC 1092
Someone challenging an election must ensure that the personal-presentation requirement is met and can be proved. Merely entering the court building does not establish compliance, and a filing defect can end the challenge before the election allegations are examined.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1088
An employee who retires on 30 June may be entitled to the increment that falls due on 1 July after completing a year of service. Authorities that delay paying the amounts due must pay interest after the deadline set by the court.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1089
Recruitment must follow the qualifications stated in the advertisement and the governing Recruitment Rules. A court will not override a merit-based eligibility decision made under those rules merely because the candidate concerned was higher in the written test.
Writ Petition (Criminal) · 2026:DHC:8797
A person who occupied property only because of employment has no independent right to remain once the employment and decree end. Even when a petition fails, courts can make practical arrangements to let a person recover personal belongings.
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Log in to see moreA registered film society and one of its members filed this writ petition after a wave of mob violence, threats, and protests (most notably around the release of the film "Padmaavat") targeted cinemas and cultural venues, with fringe groups acting as unlawful "super censors" to block exhibition of films duly certified under the Cinematograph Act. The petitioners sought enforcement of the Court's earlier guidelines in "In Re: Destruction of Public and Private Properties v. Govt. of AP" (2009) on compensating for riot damage, plus new directions on police accountability, FIR registration, bail conditions tied to deposited compensation, and liability of organisers/leaders who incite such violence.
The Court held that violent suppression of lawful artistic expression strikes at the core of constitutional freedom of speech (Article 19(1)(a)) and that the State must act decisively rather than let a "law and order" excuse become a backdoor ban. Rather than simply reiterating the 2009 guidelines, it extended and adapted the comprehensive preventive, remedial, and punitive framework it had recently laid down in Tehseen Poonawalla v. Union of India (on mob lynching) to this context of protests against cultural events, covering structural/preventive steps (Nodal Officers, Rapid Response Teams, cyber-reporting portals), victim remedies (crowd-control measures, prompt FIRs, arrests, deposit-linked bail), organiser/leader liability for incited violence, police accountability (status reports, departmental action for inaction, mandatory appeals against acquittals), and a compensation mechanism for loss of life or property. It directed the Central and State Governments to implement these measures within eight weeks and disposed of the writ petition on these terms.
No private group, however aggrieved by a film, book, or artwork, has the legal right to use threats or violence to stop its lawful public exhibition: the Constitution protects artistic freedom, and the State is legally obligated to proactively prevent such mob censorship, swiftly prosecute instigators (including organisation leaders, not just the people on the ground), and compensate victims, rather than simply banning the targeted event to "avoid trouble."
