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 moreUnder the Andhra Pradesh Police Subordinate Service Rules, a Reserve Sub-Inspector could be selected by transfer to the post of Sub-Inspector (Civil) and, on such transfer, was entitled to carry forward his seniority from the date of his original appointment as Reserve Sub-Inspector. The appellants, who had been so transferred, argued that since their seniority counted from their earlier posting, their total years of combined service (including time as Reserve Sub-Inspector) should also count toward the 6-years'-service eligibility requirement for further promotion to Inspector of Police. The Tribunal and the High Court had rejected this, holding that only service actually rendered as Sub-Inspector (Civil) counted toward the 6-year eligibility period.
The Supreme Court upheld the Tribunal and High Court, holding that "seniority" and "eligibility" are distinct legal concepts that should not be conflated. While the Reserve Sub-Inspectors were entitled to retain their carried-over seniority within the Sub-Inspector (Civil) cadre, that seniority did not substitute for the separate statutory requirement of 6 completed years of actual service as Sub-Inspector (Civil) before becoming eligible for promotion-by-transfer to Inspector. The Court distinguished "transfer simpliciter" (a mere change of place within the same cadre, which doesn't end one's lien in the parent service) from "recruitment by transfer" (a fresh mode of entry into a different cadre/service, which does end that lien) and held that being senior does not entitle a person to supersede eligibility conditions validly fixed by the rule-making authority.
Being senior in a cadre does not automatically make an employee eligible for the next promotion: if service rules fix a specific eligibility condition (such as a minimum number of years actually served in a particular post), that condition must independently be satisfied, and a junior who meets it can be promoted ahead of a senior who does not.
