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 95-year-old landowner in Mumbai had entered into a 2006 development agreement granting two companies the right to develop his property in exchange for payments, with construction required to be completed within a fixed timeline. The developers never meaningfully began construction even years later, and after the owner terminated the agreement, the assignee-developer (Prajita) sought to block him through arbitration and court proceedings while posting armed guards on the property to keep him out. The dispute had already gone through multiple rounds of litigation, including an earlier dismissed Special Leave Petition by Prajita.
Noting that no real construction had ever been carried out despite more than a decade passing, the Supreme Court found it unjust to let a stale specific-performance claim continue to block the elderly owner's possession of his own land. It brokered a resolution: the owner would deposit Rs. 20 crore with the Court registry, in exchange for which Prajita would remove its security guards and hand back possession of the property to the owner under police supervision, with Prajita entitled to withdraw the deposited amount once a possession record (Panchnama) was filed. The separate question of whether Prajita was entitled to any additional damages was referred to arbitration before a named retired judge, rather than being decided by the Court itself.
Courts can step in to end a prolonged possession standoff by ordering a clean, supervised handover against a monetary deposit, even while leaving narrower follow-on disputes (like damages) to be sorted out through arbitration.
