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 respondent was convicted by a trial court and sentenced to ten years' rigorous imprisonment for allegedly shooting a man, Akbar Ali, during a dispute over weighing paddy grain, along with a related Arms Act conviction for possessing an unlicensed pistol. The Uttarakhand High Court overturned the conviction on appeal and acquitted him, citing multiple weaknesses in the prosecution's evidence. The State then appealed to the Supreme Court to have the conviction restored.
The Supreme Court upheld the acquittal, agreeing with the High Court's reasoning. It found several genuine infirmities in the prosecution's case: the complainant's own written application to hospital staff immediately after the incident named only "some sardars," not the accused specifically; it was improbable that the accused would carry the pistol in his pocket for a full day afterward while roaming freely; the pistol and other seized items (a blood-stained shirt, soil samples) were never sent for forensic examination to confirm they matched the alleged crime; the weapon was never produced before the magistrate; and the medical evidence showed no injury mark consistent with a shot fired at the close range the prosecution alleged. The Court reiterated that in an appeal against acquittal, it will not interfere unless the High Court's reasoning was based on no evidence or was wholly perverse, and since the High Court had properly appreciated the evidence and given cogent reasons for reversing the conviction, there was no basis to disturb it. The State's appeal was dismissed.
An appellate court will not reinstate a criminal conviction over an acquittal just because eyewitnesses testified against the accused: unexplained gaps in a criminal investigation, such as skipping forensic testing of a weapon or failing to produce it in court, can reasonably create enough doubt to justify an acquittal, and the Supreme Court gives real weight to a High Court's reasoned decision on the evidence.
