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.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1073
In circumstantial-evidence cases, forensic and DNA evidence must actually corroborate the alleged crime: a conviction cannot survive where the most crucial scientific evidence, on its own terms, points away from rather than toward the prosecution's theory.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1074
A conviction based purely on circumstantial evidence requires every link in the chain, timeline, witness credibility, forensic matches, and motive, to be proven beyond reasonable doubt; gaps or suppressed evidence at any link entitle the accused to the benefit of the doubt, even in a serious case like a double murder.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8505
Courts will not quash a criminal case merely because the accused has a plausible alibi-type defence; unless that defence is conclusive and undisputed, the matter must be tested through the ordinary trial process.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8547
A private compromise between victim and accused cannot by itself secure quashing of a case involving serious, heinous allegations like attempted murder with a weapon: such matters must proceed to trial regardless of settlement.
First Appeal from Order · 2026:DHC:8563
Railway Claims Tribunals cannot reject a bona fide passenger's death claim based on speculative inferences when there is no direct evidence of an alternative cause of death; the compensation scheme under the Railways Act is to be interpreted generously in favour of victims' families.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8559
In matrimonial offences, courts can and do quash criminal proceedings once a genuine compromise is verified directly with the complainant, sparing both parties a prolonged and pointless trial.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8541
A co-accused's bail does not automatically extend to another accused where their actual roles in the offence differ materially; delay caused by one's own defence counsel cannot later be used as a ground for bail.
Execution Petition · 2026:DHC:8567
An arbitral award must be adequately stamped before a court can enforce it; courts give only a limited window to cure such defects, after which the award becomes legally unusable until the deficiency is fixed.
Arbitration Petition · 2026:DHC:8555
A genuine settlement reached through mediation renders a pending arbitration-related court petition moot, allowing parties to close out litigation quickly once they resolve their dispute privately.
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Legal Case Shots is a searchable database of Supreme Court of India judgments, each broken down into the case type, the court's key holding, and a practical lesson learnt, with the full judgment available as a PDF for citation or deeper reading.
The petitioner's land was acquired for Kolkata's Metro Railway project, and after the claim for compensation was converted to be assessed under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, the Appellate Authority awarded market value, structure value, a further 12% per annum amount under Section 30(3), and then calculated 100% solatium on the combined total of all these components. The Metro Railway challenged this before the Calcutta High Court, which held that solatium under Section 30(1) should be calculated only on the market value and asset value, excluding the additional 12% per annum amount, leading the landowner to approach the Supreme Court by special leave petition.
The Supreme Court examined the scheme of Sections 26 to 30 and Section 69 of the 2013 Act and held that the "compensation amount" on which 100% solatium is payable under Section 30(1) means only the market value plus the value of attached assets determined under Sections 26-28, and does not include the separate 12% per annum additional amount payable under Section 30(3). The Court reasoned that the 2013 Act treats solatium and the 12% additional amount as distinct components of the final award (unlike the older 1894 Act), so solatium cannot be calculated on a sum that already includes the 12% addition. Agreeing entirely with the High Court's interpretation, the Court dismissed both special leave petitions.
Under the 2013 land acquisition law, compensation has distinct components, market value, solatium, and an additional 12% per annum amount, and solatium (the 100% statutory addition) is calculated only on the market value and asset value, not on the combined total including the 12% amount.
