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 appellants, employees who had earlier claimed Scheduled Tribe status, were directed by the Bombay High Court (Nagpur Bench) to be discontinued from service and to have their past payments recovered after they declined to subject themselves to caste scrutiny. However, the very same underlying issue concerning these appellants had already been decided by a Division Bench of the same High Court in an earlier 2012 judgment, which had become final after the employer's special leave petition and review petition against it were both dismissed by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court held that since the 2012 judgment had attained finality as between these parties, the limited protections and benefits specifically granted to the appellants under paragraph 18 of that earlier judgment could not be undone or taken away through the later, collateral High Court proceedings under appeal. The Court clarified that the appellants would only be entitled to the benefits specifically spelt out in that paragraph 18: essentially being placed in the general category as on 28.11.2000, ranked below the last general-category candidate of that date. The impugned High Court orders were modified to this extent, and the appeals were accordingly disposed of with no order as to costs.
Once a judgment between the same parties on the same issue becomes final (including after an unsuccessful appeal and review), its findings cannot be reopened or overridden through a separate, later round of litigation on a related but distinct cause of action: a basic application of the principle that a final judgment binds the parties on the matters it actually decided.
