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 Goa fisheries cooperative society was wound up in the 1980s after serious financial irregularities in disbursing loans to its members. The appellant Bank was appointed Liquidator and filed 156 recovery cases against defaulting members. Years later, one defaulting member obtained a Bombay High Court ruling that, since the statutory maximum period for completing liquidation under Section 109 of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act had expired, all pending winding-up and recovery proceedings must be treated as having lapsed.
The Supreme Court held that the expiry of the Liquidator's statutory tenure under Section 109 terminates only the liquidation process and the Liquidator's role: it does not extinguish the underlying debt owed by defaulting members, nor does it automatically kill pending recovery suits and appeals. Relying on the principle that no litigant should profit from delay caused by the litigation process itself (citing Amarjeet Singh v. Devi Ratan and South Eastern Coalfields), the Court held the Bank, as the real creditor, could continue the recovery proceedings; it directed that the Registrar should ensure notice is given to creditors so pending matters before courts/tribunals/recovery officers can continue. The High Court's contrary ruling was set aside and the appeal allowed to that extent.
A borrower's debt does not simply disappear just because a statutory administrative process (like a cooperative society's winding-up) has run past its time limit: the obligation to repay money owed survives independently, and creditors can keep pursuing recovery through the courts.
