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 young man died by suicide, leaving a note stating he was being harassed over an unpaid loan he had guaranteed for someone else. The appellant, who worked in loan recovery, was accused of abetting the suicide through this harassment. Audio recordings captured heated exchanges between the two about repaying the loan. A trial court framed charges against the appellant under Section 306 IPC (abetment of suicide), and the High Court declined to discharge him, prompting this appeal.
The Supreme Court held that even taking the prosecution's case at its highest, there were no grounds to frame charges under Section 306. Reviewing its settled case law, the Court reiterated that abetment requires either direct instigation or conduct that leaves the victim "with no other option" but suicide: mere harassment, without more, is not enough. The recorded exchanges, though heated and involving demands for repayment, reflected the appellant performing his job of recovering an overdue loan, not an intent to drive the deceased to suicide. The Court also criticized the routine, casual use of Section 306 by investigating agencies and urged trial courts to apply greater scrutiny before framing such charges, rather than mechanically doing so to placate a grieving family.
Pressuring or even sharply confronting someone over a genuine debt is not, by itself, "abetment of suicide" in the eyes of the law: prosecutors and trial courts must show the accused's conduct actually left the victim no way out, not just that harsh words were exchanged before a tragedy.
