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 appellant's son died in 2014 after a fall at home, and the appellant alleged this was due to medical negligence at the hospital that treated him, filing a private criminal complaint under Section 304-A IPC. The accused got the proceedings stayed by the Calcutta High Court in 2018. During the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the stay and a court notification urging leniency toward absent parties, the trial magistrate called the case, and when the elderly appellant (who was suffering from COVID) could not appear, dismissed his complaint for default. A Sessions Judge later restored the complaint, but the High Court then quashed that restoration, effectively closing the complaint for good, prompting this appeal.
The Supreme Court held that the High Court had committed several serious errors: it failed to notice that the proceedings were legally stayed at the time of dismissal (making the magistrate's action invalid), it misunderstood who had filed an earlier related petition, and it wrongly treated an earlier casual observation about Section 256 CrPC as binding law. The Court clarified that Section 256 CrPC (which allows a magistrate to acquit an accused when the complainant fails to appear) only applies when the date in question was actually appointed for the accused's appearance, not, as here, a date fixed merely for the complainant to show cause for earlier absences. Since neither of those conditions was met, and pandemic-related restrictions barred a default dismissal, the Court restored the complaint and sent related proceedings back to the High Court for a fresh, timely decision.
A criminal complaint cannot be dismissed and turned into an automatic acquittal just because the complainant misses one hearing: that consequence under Section 256 CrPC only applies on a date specifically fixed for the accused's appearance, not on a hearing set for some other procedural purpose.
