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 morePNB Housing Finance Limited took possession of a mortgaged commercial property in Kolkata under the SARFAESI Act after the borrower defaulted on loans exceeding Rs. 3 crore. A man occupying the premises claimed he was a long-standing tenant and challenged the bank's possession before the Calcutta High Court, which ordered the property restored to him. The bank appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing the High Court should not have entertained the matter at all given the statutory appeal remedy available under the SARFAESI Act.
The Supreme Court held that the High Court erred in exercising writ jurisdiction when an appellate remedy before the Debt Recovery Tribunal/Appellate Tribunal already existed under Section 18 of SARFAESI, particularly after the 2016 amendment gave tenants a specific statutory route to challenge possession. On merits, the Court found the occupant had produced no rent receipts, tax receipts, or electricity bills predating the bank's demand notice to prove a genuine pre-existing tenancy, only rent deposits made after the notice was issued. The Court also noted the occupant's own delay in asserting his claim despite repeated public notices. The appeal was allowed, the High Court's order was set aside, and status quo was directed pending disposal of the tenant's application before the DRT within two months.
Anyone claiming tenancy rights in a property that has been mortgaged to a bank must keep independent, contemporaneous proof (rent receipts, tax bills, utility payments) to resist a bank's SARFAESI recovery action: an unregistered or undocumented claim raised only after possession is taken will not succeed. Disputes of this kind must go through the Debt Recovery Tribunal's statutory process, not a writ petition.
