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 body of one Bhagwan Singh was found in a field in February 1998. During an unrelated investigation, the appellant Raghuvendra was arrested and confessed to killing Bhagwan Singh with his uncle's help; the body was then identified through the deceased's widow and daughter. The prosecution's case rested on the "last seen" theory (the appellant and his uncle had stayed overnight with the deceased and left with him the next morning, shortly before his body was found) along with recovery of the deceased's belongings from the appellant and his uncle.
Both the Trial Court and the Madhya Pradesh High Court had convicted Raghuvendra and his uncle (only Raghuvendra appealed to the Supreme Court). The Supreme Court found no reason to disbelieve the two key witnesses, who were well acquainted with the appellant as a frequent visitor to their home, and held that the combination of the "last seen" evidence and recovery of the deceased's personal articles (including his purse and clothing) from the appellant left no room for doubt that the appellant and his uncle caused the death. Finding no substantial question of law and no infirmity in the concurrent findings of the courts below, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the conviction.
Where an accused is proven to have been the last person seen with a victim shortly before death, and is later found in possession of the victim's belongings, courts can treat this combination of circumstances as sufficient to sustain a murder conviction even without direct eyewitnesses to the killing itself.
