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 moreTwo Army soldiers were accused of stealing two pistols during a tank-conversion training exercise in Rajasthan in 2006. A District Court Martial convicted and dismissed them from service based on their written and verbal confessions made before fellow soldiers and officers. The Armed Forces Tribunal later set aside the conviction, reasoning that confessions made to the Army could not be relied upon and ordering reinstatement without back wages. The Union of India appealed this reversal to the Supreme Court, while the soldiers separately appealed the denial of back wages.
The Supreme Court held that the Tribunal had misread the law: confessions are inadmissible only when made to a police officer (including a military police officer), not when made to an ordinary Army officer or before fellow soldiers, so the soldiers' confessions were validly used as evidence. The Court also found the Tribunal wrongly disturbed the trial court's factual findings without any genuine legal error, exceeding its appellate jurisdiction under Section 15 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act. It restored the conviction while reducing the sentence to time already served. The appeals of the two convicted soldiers were dismissed.
A confession made to a regular Army/military officer (as opposed to a police or military police officer) can be used as evidence in a court martial, and appellate tribunals cannot overturn trial findings merely because a different view is possible: there must be a genuine legal error.
