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.
Transfer Petition (Criminal) · 2026 INSC 1060
Where a marriage has irretrievably broken down and the parties reach a genuine, voluntary settlement, including on alimony, the Supreme Court can use its Article 142 powers to grant a mutual-consent divorce and close out all related litigation in one stroke, without requiring the usual statutory waiting period.
Writ Petition (Civil) · 2026 INSC 1061
In long-running, complex litigation involving apportioned government liabilities across states, the Supreme Court can use a mechanism like a retired-judge committee plus periodic compliance affidavits to bring genuine finality, including firm timelines, transparency obligations, and interest for delayed payment, rather than leaving matters open-ended.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1062
In an "as is where is" liquidation auction, a bidder who voluntarily accepts the auction terms cannot later resile from a forfeiture clause by citing regulatory caps or after-the-fact excuses for non-payment: courts will enforce the auction notice's own conditions.
Writ Petition (Criminal) · 2026:DHC:8338-DB
Once someone is released from custody because the police failed to properly communicate the grounds of arrest, the police cannot simply re-arrest them by adding new charges: a specific, court-supervised procedure with senior-officer accountability must be followed, or the re-arrest itself becomes illegal.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8308
In economic-offence cases, bail can still be granted where the method used to quantify the alleged financial evasion is not adequately justified, and where the apprehension of re-offending is speculative rather than evidence-based.
Writ Petition (Criminal) · 2026:DHC:8323
A parole claim must be backed by a genuine, verifiable application to the competent jail authority: courts will scrutinise irregularities like an incomplete address, an unexplained thumb mark, or reliance on a mere friend's affidavit rather than close family.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8337
Courts can grant short, strictly time-bound interim bail purely on humanitarian/compassionate grounds (such as caring for a seriously ill family member), even while a case remains pending trial and an earlier bail plea has failed.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8312
Courts will not repeatedly re-examine a bail plea already rejected on merits unless the applicant can point to a genuine change in circumstances since the earlier order.
First Appeal from Order · 2026:DHC:8334
Under the no-fault compensation scheme for railway accidents, a valid ticket-holder injured while attempting to board a train, even carelessly, is generally entitled to compensation unless the railway can show a deliberate, conscious exposure to danger, not mere negligence.
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Legal Case Shots is a searchable database of Supreme Court of India judgments, each broken down into the case type, the court's key holding, and a practical lesson learnt, with the full judgment available as a PDF for citation or deeper reading.
These connected appeals were referred to a three-judge bench because of conflicting Supreme Court precedent on a recurring matrimonial-law question: can a spouse whose marriage is declared void or voidable under Section 11 of the Hindu Marriage Act still claim permanent alimony under Section 25, or interim maintenance under Section 24, of the same Act? Some earlier decisions had allowed such claims while others had disallowed them, prompting a two-judge bench to refer the legal question for authoritative resolution rather than decide the underlying appeals itself.
The Court held that a spouse whose marriage has been declared void under Section 11 is nonetheless entitled to seek permanent alimony or maintenance under Section 25, though whether such relief is actually granted depends on the facts of each case and the conduct of the parties, since the relief is discretionary. It further held that even where a court reaches a prima facie conclusion that a marriage is void or voidable, it is not barred from granting interim maintenance (maintenance pendente lite) under Section 24 while the main proceeding is pending, provided the statutory conditions are met and the conduct of the party seeking relief is considered. Having answered these legal questions, the Court did not decide the individual appeals on their facts, and instead directed the Registry to place them before the appropriate bench for final disposal on merits.
A void or voidable marriage under Hindu law does not automatically leave a spouse without any financial recourse. Courts retain discretion to award alimony or interim maintenance even in such cases, based on the parties' conduct and individual circumstances, rather than treating a void marriage as a total bar to relief.
