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, a farmer in Nandurbar district, Maharashtra, applied for an electricity connection in December 1996 to run a bore well on his agricultural land, submitting the required test report only in March 2005. Even after the test report was filed, it took roughly another decade, until September 2015, and only after the appellant lodged a criminal complaint and the Bombay High Court intervened, for the connection to actually be installed. His consumer complaint for compensation succeeded before the District Forum, was reversed by the State Commission, and was ultimately allowed on review by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), which awarded him Rs 2,00,000; he appealed to the Supreme Court seeking higher compensation.
The Supreme Court found that while the delay up to 2005 was attributable to the appellant's own failure to submit the test report, there was no cogent explanation for the decade-long delay thereafter in actually granting the connection, during which the appellant could not use his bore well to irrigate his land. Holding that the NCDRC's award of Rs 2,00,000 was inadequate to meet the standard of "just and fair compensation," the Court enhanced the compensation to Rs 5,00,000, payable within four weeks, with 9% annual interest on default. The civil appeal was allowed in these terms with no order as to costs.
A consumer harmed by a utility's unexplained and prolonged delay in providing a service they are otherwise entitled to can seek, and courts can award, compensation significantly higher than what a lower consumer forum granted, if that earlier amount does not fairly reflect the actual hardship suffered.
