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.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1073
In circumstantial-evidence cases, forensic and DNA evidence must actually corroborate the alleged crime: a conviction cannot survive where the most crucial scientific evidence, on its own terms, points away from rather than toward the prosecution's theory.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1074
A conviction based purely on circumstantial evidence requires every link in the chain, timeline, witness credibility, forensic matches, and motive, to be proven beyond reasonable doubt; gaps or suppressed evidence at any link entitle the accused to the benefit of the doubt, even in a serious case like a double murder.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8505
Courts will not quash a criminal case merely because the accused has a plausible alibi-type defence; unless that defence is conclusive and undisputed, the matter must be tested through the ordinary trial process.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8547
A private compromise between victim and accused cannot by itself secure quashing of a case involving serious, heinous allegations like attempted murder with a weapon: such matters must proceed to trial regardless of settlement.
First Appeal from Order · 2026:DHC:8563
Railway Claims Tribunals cannot reject a bona fide passenger's death claim based on speculative inferences when there is no direct evidence of an alternative cause of death; the compensation scheme under the Railways Act is to be interpreted generously in favour of victims' families.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8559
In matrimonial offences, courts can and do quash criminal proceedings once a genuine compromise is verified directly with the complainant, sparing both parties a prolonged and pointless trial.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8541
A co-accused's bail does not automatically extend to another accused where their actual roles in the offence differ materially; delay caused by one's own defence counsel cannot later be used as a ground for bail.
Execution Petition · 2026:DHC:8567
An arbitral award must be adequately stamped before a court can enforce it; courts give only a limited window to cure such defects, after which the award becomes legally unusable until the deficiency is fixed.
Arbitration Petition · 2026:DHC:8555
A genuine settlement reached through mediation renders a pending arbitration-related court petition moot, allowing parties to close out litigation quickly once they resolve their dispute privately.
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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.
A housing society of slum dwellers and its appointed developer had been issued a Letter of Intent (LOI) in 2005 to redevelop a plot in Mumbai under a Slum Rehabilitation Scheme, but the plot fell within a Coastal Regulation Zone requiring separate clearance. While that clearance was pending, the Maharashtra Government introduced a new rule in 2008 requiring developers to pay a 25% premium on government-owned land used for such schemes, and authorities demanded over Rs. 8.47 crore in premium from the appellants. The appellants challenged this demand, arguing the delay in clearance (not their fault) should not expose them to a rule introduced after their original LOI.
The Supreme Court held that the LOI was expressly valid for only three months, and since the appellants never took steps to formally keep it alive while awaiting coastal clearance, the LOI could not shield them from the new premium rule introduced in 2008. Because the LOI had lapsed, the appellants were bound by the government's 2008 resolution requiring payment of 25% premium under the Ready Reckoner rates. The Court found no illegality in the High Court's dismissal of the writ petition and the review petition, and dismissed the appeals.
A regulatory approval or permit with an express validity period does not survive indefinitely just because of external delays; if a person wants to preserve such rights while clearances are pending elsewhere, they must take active steps to keep the approval alive rather than assuming it stays valid by default.
