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 moreA woman (respondent no. 2) married into the Varshney family in 1997; after the couple separated amid a matrimonial dispute, she filed an FIR in 2002 accusing her husband, her parents-in-law, and three sisters-in-law of cruelty and dowry harassment. The accused approached the Supreme Court seeking to quash the charge sheet and the magistrate's order taking cognizance, arguing the allegations against several of them were vague and unsubstantiated.
The Supreme Court declined to quash the proceedings against the husband and his parents (appellant nos. 1-3), finding sufficient prima facie material to let the trial continue, and rejected the argument that medical reports contradicting the allegations should have been weighed at this pre-trial stage. However, the Court quashed the proceedings against the three married sisters-in-law (appellant nos. 4-6), holding that they lived independently after marriage, had no concrete allegations of harassment levelled against them individually, and that their only established involvement, attending family celebrations like a housewarming and a naming ceremony, could not be treated as acts of harassment. The Court directed the trial court to expeditiously dispose of the remaining case against the husband and his parents.
In matrimonial cruelty/dowry cases, courts will scrutinize whether specific, concrete allegations exist against each named relative: generic or omnibus accusations against extended family members (especially those who do not reside with the couple) can be quashed, even while the core case against the husband and his parents proceeds to trial.
