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 moreResidents of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry sued under Section 92 CPC to have the Ashram Trust's trustees removed and a new administrative scheme framed, alleging the trustees failed to act against a controversial 2008 biography of Sri Aurobindo ("The Lives of Sri Aurobindo" by Peter Heehs) and against its author. The trial court had initially revoked its own earlier leave to bring the suit, but the Madras High Court reversed that and held the suit was maintainable, directing the matter to proceed.
The Supreme Court noted the legality of banning the book was itself still pending separately before the Orissa High Court, so it would be premature to judge the trustees for not having pre-empted that outcome. The trustees had expressed displeasure with the book's contents and had not sponsored or published it: the Court held this was a reasonable, if mild, response, and that trustees are entitled to wide discretion in administering a trust; mere disagreement with how that discretion was exercised does not amount to a breach of trust unless the exercise was perverse. Finding no maladministration, the Court set aside the High Court's order and restored the revocation of leave to sue, effectively ending the suit, while urging both sides, who are fellow ashram residents, to pursue an amicable settlement instead of further litigation.
A Section 92 CPC suit to remove trustees of a charitable or religious trust will not succeed merely because some members disagree with a trustee's discretionary administrative choices; courts require a genuine, perverse breach of trust, not just a difference of opinion, however strongly felt.
