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 High Court of Punjab & Haryana had disposed of a second appeal on the basis of a compromise said to have been reached between the parties, rather than deciding it on merits. The appellants, who were respondents in that second appeal, filed a review petition challenging how the compromise disposal came about, but the High Court dismissed the review petition without properly examining their grievance. They then approached the Supreme Court by special leave against both the original disposal and the dismissal of their review petition.
The Supreme Court held that the High Court had not properly examined the appellants' plea about the circumstances of the alleged compromise, and that the High Court itself, being the court that passed the compromise order, was the right forum to re-examine the issue. The Court allowed the appeal in part, set aside the order dismissing the review petition, and permitted the appellants to amend their review petition to raise all their grievances about how the second appeal came to be disposed of. The matter was sent back to the High Court to decide the review petition afresh on merits, without the Supreme Court expressing any view on the underlying merits itself.
If a court disposes of a case "by compromise" without properly verifying that the compromise was genuinely agreed to, the aggrieved party should challenge this through a review petition before the same court, and that court is obligated to examine such a challenge properly on its merits rather than simply turning the party away to other remedies.
