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 moreFollowing a caste-based dispute in a Tamil Nadu village, a mob of accused persons armed with sickles and kerosene allegedly set fire to a hut and then attacked and killed one Murugaiyan as he fled, inflicting fatal injuries with sickles in front of multiple eyewitnesses. The trial court convicted several of the accused, which was substantially upheld by the Madras High Court (Madurai Bench), and this appeal (along with a connected appeal by other co-accused) challenged that conviction before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court examined the eyewitness testimony and found it credible and consistent regarding the common object of the unlawful assembly to attack the deceased and burn the hut over the caste dispute, holding that under Section 149 IPC it is not necessary to prove which specific member of an unlawful assembly struck which blow, only that the common object existed. Relying on settled precedent that mere presence in, and shared purpose of, an unlawful assembly is sufficient to fasten vicarious liability, the Court found no merit in the appellants' challenge to the appreciation of evidence by the lower courts. The appeals were accordingly dismissed, with the surviving appellants (the others had died during the pendency of the appeal) directed to surrender within four weeks to serve the remainder of their sentences.
Under Section 149 IPC, every member of an unlawful assembly sharing a common object can be held criminally liable for an offence committed in furtherance of that object, even without proof of each individual's specific act: mere knowing participation in the mob's shared purpose is enough to establish guilt.
