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 moreThe appellants' land had been acquired in 1981 for a dam project. In 2011 they sought release/re-grant of the land under a 2001 Gujarat government resolution that allowed re-grant of acquired land no longer needed for public purpose. Their request was rejected, and the Gujarat High Court held that land once validly acquired for public purpose cannot be re-granted to the original owner, relying on earlier Supreme Court precedent.
The Supreme Court agreed with the High Court that the appellants were not entitled to re-grant of the acquired land, and went further to hold that the State's re-grant policy itself was unconstitutional: it violated Article 14 because it allowed disposal of government land vested in the State without any transparent criteria and without regard to the "doctrine of public trust" governing how public land may be disposed of. The Court directed that the re-grant policy should not be given effect to in future, while leaving the State free to frame a proper rehabilitation policy for persons rendered landless by acquisition, consistent with Article 14.
Government land once acquired for a public purpose cannot simply be handed back to the original owner through ad hoc executive policy; any scheme for disposing of or re-granting public land must be transparent, non-arbitrary, and consistent with the constitutional guarantee of equality: a lesson relevant to anyone whose land was acquired decades ago and who hopes for its return.
