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 company applied in 1992 for a lease of 1,500 acres of government land in Kutch, Gujarat, for salt manufacturing. The application was rejected by the District Collector, and a revision against a second rejection (1999) was itself filed more than five years late and was rejected on grounds of delay in 2005. The company challenged that 2005 rejection in the Gujarat High Court only in 2011, six years later, by which time the land had been earmarked for a Special Economic Zone at Mundra.
The Single Judge of the High Court dismissed the company's writ petition for unexplained delay and laches at every stage. The Division Bench reversed this, treating the delay as the State's fault and directing that land be allotted from any other survey number. The Supreme Court restored the Single Judge's view, holding that the company had been inexcusably indolent in pursuing its remedy at multiple stages over nearly two decades, that no fundamental or legal right violation was shown, and that the Division Bench was wrong both in attributing the delay to the State and in directing allotment of substitute land when none was shown to be available. The appeal was allowed and the Division Bench's order was set aside.
Even a claim that might otherwise have some merit can be defeated by the claimant's own prolonged, unexplained delay in pursuing it through the proper legal channels: courts expect diligence, not years of inaction followed by a late challenge.
