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 moreKarnataka Lokayuktha Police registered disproportionate-assets corruption cases against two public servants (an Assistant Engineer and a Secretary to Government) after conducting preliminary source-report enquiries. The accused and their relatives challenged the proceedings before the Karnataka High Court, arguing that the preliminary enquiry and resulting source reports were invalid because they were never entered in the police station's "General Diary," and the High Court agreed and quashed the FIR and related proceedings. The State of Karnataka then appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court held that the absence of a General Diary entry recording the preliminary enquiry does not, by itself, invalidate the enquiry or the FIR. Relying on its earlier ruling in Lalitha Kumari, the Court clarified that the duty to record such entries is an "obligation of best efforts," and any lapse is a matter to be weighed by the trial court on the facts, not a ground for a writ court to quash proceedings outright on a pure question of law. The Court also reaffirmed that preliminary enquiries are permissible and necessary safeguards in corruption cases to screen out frivolous prosecutions against public servants. It therefore allowed the appeals, set aside the High Court's quashing order, and directed the trial court to proceed expeditiously without being influenced by any of its own observations on the merits.
A procedural lapse like a missing diary entry during a police preliminary enquiry does not automatically void a corruption prosecution: such lapses are assessed for real prejudice at trial, not used as a shortcut to kill a case at the threshold.
