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 Junior Engineer with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was held guilty of contempt by the Delhi High Court for allegedly filing a false affidavit in a case about unauthorised construction that his department was supposed to demolish. The High Court sentenced him to 30 days' simple imprisonment and a fine, and later dismissed his review petition. He appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing he was never given a formal, specific charge and that his affidavit was in fact backed by contemporaneous departmental records and photographs showing he had carried out the demolitions as required.
The Supreme Court found that the High Court never framed or communicated a proper charge to the appellant before convicting him for contempt, and that it had failed to even consider his contemporaneous office records, photographs, and evidence of departmental exoneration on the same facts. Since contempt proceedings are quasi-criminal and demand the same standard of proof and procedural safeguards as criminal cases, convicting him without a specific charge and without weighing his evidence was unsustainable. The Court held the appellant's affidavit was adequately supported by genuine contemporaneous records and could not be treated as an attempt to mislead the court. It quashed the High Court's contempt findings and sentence, and dropped the underlying show-cause notices, allowing the appeal.
A person cannot be convicted for contempt of court without being told precisely what charge they must answer, and courts must weigh documentary evidence actually placed on record before concluding someone lied to the court.
