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 moreFour men were tried together for the murder of a goggle-seller who was attacked at a roadside dhaba (eatery) in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, after an altercation linked to business rivalry. The trial court convicted only the man who actually stabbed the victim with a knife (Sikandar Ali) and acquitted the other three, who had merely held the victim's hands during the attack, finding no proof they shared a common intention to kill. On the State's and the victim's widow's appeal, the High Court reversed the acquittal of the three and convicted all four of murder with life imprisonment.
The Supreme Court upheld Sikandar Ali's conviction for murder, since he inflicted the fatal knife wound and the eyewitness and medical evidence against him was credible. However, for the other three, the Court held there was no prior planning or shared intention to kill: they had simply joined a sudden quarrel and physically restrained the victim during a scuffle that escalated unexpectedly. The Court held this fell within Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC (culpable homicide without premeditation, in a sudden fight, without taking undue advantage), and converted their conviction from murder (Section 302) to the lesser offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304 Part II). Since they had already served the period of imprisonment that offence carried, the Court ordered their immediate release.
Not everyone present during a fatal attack is automatically guilty of murder: the law distinguishes the person who strikes the fatal blow with intent from others who get swept into a sudden, unplanned fight, and punishment is calibrated to each person's actual role and state of mind.
