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 appellant, the brother-in-law (devar) of a woman who died under mysterious circumstances at her matrimonial home just seven months into her marriage, was named in an FIR alleging dowry death under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Dowry Prohibition Act. He had earlier been granted anticipatory bail by the Allahabad High Court, but in an unusual order the High Court limited that protection only "till the filing of the police charge sheet." Once the chargesheet was filed, the appellant's protection lapsed, and when he sought fresh anticipatory bail, the same High Court rejected it, prompting this appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court criticised the High Court's practice of granting anticipatory bail with a built-in expiry tied to the filing of the chargesheet, holding there was no legal basis to restrict bail this way once the court had already exercised its discretion in the accused's favour. Relying on settled precedent (including the Constitution Bench decision in Sushila Aggarwal and earlier rulings in Bharat Chaudhary and Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia), the Court held that anticipatory bail, once granted, ordinarily continues without a fixed expiry, filing of a chargesheet, taking of cognizance, or issuance of summons does not by itself terminate that protection unless the court records special reasons. Risk to the investigation should be managed through conditions (cooperation, attendance, non-tampering) rather than artificial time limits. The Court set aside the High Court's order and directed that if arrested, the appellant be released on anticipatory bail on conditions the Investigating Officer considers fit, after which he must appear before the trial court and furnish a fresh bail bond.
Anticipatory bail, once properly granted, does not automatically expire when a chargesheet is filed or the case moves forward. Courts cannot impose an artificial cutoff on bail protection; any restriction on it must be through cancellation or modification for genuine reasons, not a built-in time limit set at the outset.
