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.
NTPC, an operational creditor in the insolvency resolution process of a company, objected that its claim had not been properly reflected under the heading "Claims of Operational Creditors" in the Information Memorandum prepared by the Resolution Professional. Instead, the claim was listed under a separate heading of "other creditor claims (claims under adjudication)," since the claim amount itself was still pending adjudication before an arbitrator. NTPC filed a civil appeal (with an application for clarification/direction) seeking correction of this classification.
The Supreme Court held that the Resolution Professional had correctly and fairly noted NTPC's claim in the Information Memorandum, just under a different heading reflecting that the claim's quantum was disputed and pending arbitration. It explained that an Information Memorandum's purpose is only to give an accurate picture of the company's financial position for prospective resolution applicants: it does not adjudicate claims, and a Resolution Professional has no power to accept or reject them. The Court clarified that NTPC's claim was not extinguished by this classification, would be taken into account by the Committee of Creditors and resolution applicants in formulating a resolution plan, and that NTPC could raise objections at the stage of the final resolution plan if it remained aggrieved. The civil appeal was disposed of on this basis, and the interim order passed earlier in the matter was vacated.
During a company's insolvency resolution, having a disputed or not-yet-adjudicated claim recorded under a different heading in the Information Memorandum does not mean the claim is lost: creditors retain the right to pursue adjudication of the claim separately and to object to the final resolution plan if their interests are not properly accounted for.
