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 moreRaj Rani married Rajinder Kumar in May 1996 after the complainant (her brother) gave substantial dowry. Soon after, she was allegedly harassed by her husband and in-laws for further dowry demands, including a demand for Rs.20,000 made shortly before her death. The Trial Court convicted the husband under Section 304B IPC (dowry death) and the Punjab & Haryana High Court upheld the conviction and sentence; he then appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Court restated the five essential ingredients of Section 304B IPC, death within seven years of marriage, death otherwise than under normal circumstances, cruelty/harassment by husband or relatives connected with a dowry demand, and such harassment occurring "soon before" death, and explained that Section 113B of the Evidence Act creates a legal presumption of dowry death once these elements are proved, shifting the burden to the accused. On the facts, it found the complainant's and another witness's testimony clearly established dowry-related harassment of Raj Rani shortly before her unnatural death within seven years of marriage. Concluding the prosecution had proved all the statutory ingredients, the Court held the Trial Court and High Court had rightly applied the presumption and upheld the conviction. The appeal was dismissed and the appellant ordered to be taken into custody to serve the remainder of his sentence.
In dowry death cases, once it is proved that a woman died an unnatural death within seven years of marriage after being harassed for dowry shortly beforehand, the law presumes the accused caused the death: it is then on the accused to rebut that presumption, not on the prosecution to prove intent separately.
