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 dispute over payment for four plates of biryani at a food stall escalated into a fatal attack. The stall owner and several associates later confronted the complainant's group with knives and sticks, fatally stabbing one person and injuring others. The trial court convicted the accused under Section 302 read with Sections 143, 147, 148 and 323 IPC, and the Gujarat High Court upheld the conviction. The accused appealed to the Supreme Court by special leave.
The Supreme Court held that its power under Article 136 is not meant to disturb concurrent findings of fact by two lower courts except in exceptional circumstances, and found none here. It upheld that all the accused shared a "common object" under Section 149 IPC, since they arrived together armed with knives and sticks after the initial altercation, making every member of the unlawful assembly liable for the resulting murder regardless of who struck the fatal blow. The Court also rejected the plea for a lesser offense (Section 304 Part II), holding the attack was not a sudden, unpremeditated act in the heat of passion but a planned assault by nine armed men. The appeals were dismissed and the conviction and sentence affirmed.
If you join a group that goes somewhere armed with weapons for a confrontation, you can be held equally guilty for a killing committed by any member of that group: courts don't require proof of exactly who struck the fatal blow once a shared "common object" to commit violence is established.
