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 moreThis judgment disposed of a batch of ten tagged civil appeals arising from land acquired for the Somashila/Telugu Ganga Project between 1990 and 1994. In the lead appeal (arising from SLP(C) No. 8343/2018), the High Court had refused to even consider the appellant's claim for enhanced compensation because of unexplained delay in approaching it. In the connected appeals, the claimants sought enhancement of compensation fixed for pomegranate trees standing on the acquired land.
For the lead appeal, the Court condoned the delay in approaching the High Court, on the condition that the appellant would not get statutory benefits (like interest) for the delay period itself, and remitted the matter to the High Court to decide the compensation claim on its merits. For the connected appeals, the Court noted that in an earlier, related case concerning the same project, it had already fixed pomegranate tree compensation at Rs. 3,000 per tree (up from Rs. 2,000 fixed by the High Court); applying the same rate for consistency, it enhanced compensation to Rs. 3,000 per tree with statutory benefits, except for the delay period.
Courts tend to take a lenient view on delay in land-acquisition enhancement cases, since the real consequence of delay is usually just the loss of interim statutory benefits (like interest) for the delayed period, not an outright bar on the claim itself; and compensation for identical assets acquired under the same project is kept consistent across similarly situated landowners.
