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.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1073
In circumstantial-evidence cases, forensic and DNA evidence must actually corroborate the alleged crime: a conviction cannot survive where the most crucial scientific evidence, on its own terms, points away from rather than toward the prosecution's theory.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1074
A conviction based purely on circumstantial evidence requires every link in the chain, timeline, witness credibility, forensic matches, and motive, to be proven beyond reasonable doubt; gaps or suppressed evidence at any link entitle the accused to the benefit of the doubt, even in a serious case like a double murder.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8505
Courts will not quash a criminal case merely because the accused has a plausible alibi-type defence; unless that defence is conclusive and undisputed, the matter must be tested through the ordinary trial process.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8547
A private compromise between victim and accused cannot by itself secure quashing of a case involving serious, heinous allegations like attempted murder with a weapon: such matters must proceed to trial regardless of settlement.
First Appeal from Order · 2026:DHC:8563
Railway Claims Tribunals cannot reject a bona fide passenger's death claim based on speculative inferences when there is no direct evidence of an alternative cause of death; the compensation scheme under the Railways Act is to be interpreted generously in favour of victims' families.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8559
In matrimonial offences, courts can and do quash criminal proceedings once a genuine compromise is verified directly with the complainant, sparing both parties a prolonged and pointless trial.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8541
A co-accused's bail does not automatically extend to another accused where their actual roles in the offence differ materially; delay caused by one's own defence counsel cannot later be used as a ground for bail.
Execution Petition · 2026:DHC:8567
An arbitral award must be adequately stamped before a court can enforce it; courts give only a limited window to cure such defects, after which the award becomes legally unusable until the deficiency is fixed.
Arbitration Petition · 2026:DHC:8555
A genuine settlement reached through mediation renders a pending arbitration-related court petition moot, allowing parties to close out litigation quickly once they resolve their dispute privately.
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Legal Case Shots is a searchable database of Supreme Court of India judgments, each broken down into the case type, the court's key holding, and a practical lesson learnt, with the full judgment available as a PDF for citation or deeper reading.
During the insolvency resolution process of Meghalaya Infratech Ltd., the Committee of Creditors (CoC) evaluated competing bids from prospective buyers and ultimately approved the Resolution Plan submitted by Ngaitlang Dhar, the highest bidder, after a competing bidder (PPIPL) failed to improve its offer within the CoC's timeline and was absent from a crucial meeting. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved this plan, but the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) later set aside that approval, holding that PPIPL should have been given more time to submit a revised bid.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed the well-settled principle that the "commercial wisdom" of the Committee of Creditors is given primacy under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and is not open to judicial review except on narrow grounds of "material irregularity" in the decision-making process. After examining the CoC's meeting minutes in detail, the Court found the process followed was fair and transparent, that PPIPL had been given adequate opportunity to improve its bid and was being held to a legitimate statutory timeline, and that no material irregularity existed. It therefore set aside the NCLAT's order and restored the approval of Ngaitlang Dhar's Resolution Plan, noting that the plan's purpose, reviving the company, had in fact already been achieved.
Courts will generally not second-guess the business decisions of a creditors' committee in an insolvency process so long as the procedure followed was fair and transparent; bidders who are given a genuine opportunity but fail to act within the prescribed timeline cannot later claim unfair treatment.
