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 Mumbai municipal councillor was disqualified after her caste certificate (needed for a reserved-category seat) was invalidated. The appellants, who had secured the second-highest votes in their respective wards, argued they should be declared elected to fill the resulting casual vacancies rather than the State Election Commission calling fresh by-elections. The Bombay High Court had dismissed their writ petitions and upheld the Commission's approach of holding fresh by-elections. Four connected appeals raising the same legal question were heard and decided together.
The Supreme Court allowed the appeals and set aside the High Court's judgment, holding that the State Election Commission, before deciding to hold by-elections to fill a casual vacancy, must first apply its mind to Section 34 of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888, which prescribes how casual vacancies are to be filled, and must take into account factors such as a pending election petition that already seeks a declaration that the runner-up should be deemed elected. Since there was no evidence on record that the Commission had actually considered Section 34 before proceeding toward by-elections, the Court directed the Commission to take a fresh decision on how to fill the vacancies, properly considering these factors, before issuing any notification for a by-election.
Election authorities cannot default to the most familiar option (a fresh by-election) without first properly considering the specific statutory procedure that governs how a particular type of vacancy must be filled: a court can step in to insist on a correctly reasoned decision even while leaving the final administrative choice to the authority itself.
