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 moreKanika Goel and her husband, both India-connected but US-based, married in India and the US and had a daughter. After the marriage broke down, Kanika brought the child to India, and the husband obtained a US (Illinois) court order for the child's return and filed a habeas corpus petition in the Delhi High Court. The Delhi High Court directed Kanika to comply and return the child to the US court's jurisdiction, and she appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's judgment and crafted a detailed, practical arrangement instead of a blunt custody order: the child's custody dispute would be decided on merits by the Family Court in Delhi, while the husband was directed to bear the cost of the mother's and child's travel, legal expenses, and comfortable stay if she later needed to appear before the US court. The Court balanced respect for the foreign court's proceedings against the practical reality of the mother and child's situation in India, declining to mechanically enforce the foreign return order. Both appeals were allowed on these terms with no order as to costs.
In international child-custody disputes, Indian courts will look at the child's best interests and practical fairness rather than automatically enforcing a foreign court's custody order, and can fashion conditional, protective arrangements rather than an all-or-nothing outcome.
