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 moreThe plaintiffs, living abroad, had entrusted close relatives (the defendants) with funds to purchase two properties in Hyderabad in the name of one of the plaintiffs. They later discovered that one property's sale deed was executed in favour of a different relative, and the other was jointly registered in a defendant's son's name, prompting two civil suits for declaration of title and possession. The High Court had reversed the trial court and rejected both plaints outright under Order VII Rule 11 CPC, holding the suits barred by limitation and (in one case) by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act.
The Supreme Court held that rejection of a plaint under Order VII Rule 11 is a drastic power to be exercised only when the plaint's own averments, taken as true, disclose no cause of action or a clear bar: the defence's version is irrelevant at this stage. Taking the plaintiffs' pleaded facts at face value, the Court found both suits were filed within the limitation period from the date of knowledge, and that the dispute was not a benami claim (since the plaintiffs sought a declaration of their own title and possession, not recovery of benami property). It reversed the High Court's rejection, allowed the appeal, and directed the trial court to hear and decide both suits on merits.
A court can only reject a lawsuit outright at the threshold if the plaintiff's own stated facts, assumed true, show no valid claim; genuine factual disputes about ownership and limitation must go to a full trial rather than being screened out early.
