Supreme Court of India Judgements

47270 Judgements hosted as on 05/07/2026 - Search (FREE), Subscribe @ Rs 99/- for 6 months, sclaw@sclaw.in, WA +91 9417245693.

Month: November 2022

Constitution Limitation

Army Act, 1950 – Sections 45 and 122 – Martial Proceedings – Period of limitation for trial – For the purpose of Section 122, the two dates will be relevant i.e., the date when the alleged offence comes to the knowledge of the person aggrieved and the date on which the authority competent to initiate action comes to know about the alleged offence

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH IC-56663X COL ANIL KUMAR GUPTA — Appellant Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit, CJI., and Bela…

Constitution

Jharkhand High Court (Public Interest Litigation) Rules, 2010 – HELD allegations made by petitioner vague, very much generalized and not at all substantiated by anything worthy to be called an evidence. Allegations of corruption and siphoning of money from shell companies are nothing but a bald allegation, without substantiating the allegations. Petitioner non- disclosure of the credentials of the petitioner and the past efforts made for similar reliefs. PILs dismissed.

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH STATE OF JHARKHAND — Appellant Vs. SHIV SHANKAR SHARMA AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit, CJI., S. Ravindra Bhat and…

Land Acquisition

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 – Sections 4 and 6 – Acquisition of land – When the acquisition is solely for the purpose of excavation of coal and the entire land is acquired on the basis of the estimates of the coal reserve identified and the entire land is to be mined and used and no further developmental activity is required

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH S. SHANKARAIAH THR. GPA HOLDER AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. THE LAND ACQUISITION OFFICER AND REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER PEDDAPALI KARIMNAGAR DIST. AND OTHERS —…

Rent

Mesne profits/compensation – From the date of the decree of eviction, the tenant is liable to pay mesne profits or compensation for use and occupation of the premises at the same rate at which the landlord would have been able to let out the premises – Landlord not bound by contractual rate of rent

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SUMER CORPORATION — Appellant Vs. VIJAY ANANT GANGAN AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and M.M. Sundresh, JJ. ) Civil Appeal…

State Laws

Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 – Section 52(1A) read with Section 102(1)(ca) – Election – Non-disclosure of conviction – Failure to disclose conviction for an offence under the Kerala Police Act for holding a dharna in front of the Panchayat office, not a ground for declaring an election void – Appeal allowed.

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH RAVI NAMBOOTHIRI — Appellant Vs. K.A. BAIJU AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : S. Abdul Nazeer and V.Ramasubramanian, JJ. ) Civil Appeal Nos.…

C P C Specific Performance

Suit for specific performance – There was no specific issue framed by the learned Trial Court on readiness and willingness on the part of the plaintiff – There must be a specific issue framed on readiness and willingness on the part of the plaintiff in a suit for specific performance and before giving any specific finding, the parties must be put to notice. Remanded

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH V.S. RAMAKRISHNAN — Appellant Vs. P.M. MUHAMMED ALI — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and M.M. Sundresh, JJ. ) Civil Appeal Nos. 8050-8051…

Consumer Corporate

Standard Fire & Special Perils policy – Once it is proved that there is a deficiency in service and that insurance company knowingly entered into a contract, notwithstanding the exclusion clause, the consequence would flow out of it HELD per the common law principle of acquiescence and estoppel, insurance cannot be allowed to take advantage of its own wrong, if any. It is a conscious waiver of the exclusion clause by insurance company.

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH M/S TEXCO MARKETING PVT. LTD. — Appellant Vs. TATA AIG GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD. AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Surya Kant and…

Banking C P C

Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 – jurisdiction of a Civil Court to try a suit filed by a borrower against a Bank Not ousted by RDB Act – the proceedings under the RDB Act will not be impeded in any manner by filing of a separate suit before the Civil Court – there is no question of transfer of the suit whether by consent or otherwise to DRT

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH BANK OF RAJASTHAN LIMITED — Appellant Vs. VCK SHARES & STOCK BROKING SERVICES LIMITED — Respondent ( Before : Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Abhay S.…

Constitution

Stamp (West Bengal Amendment) Act, 1990 – Section 47A – Public auction – Market value of property – Determination of – to say that even in a court monitored auction, the Registering Authority would have a say on what is the market price, would amount to the Registering Authority sitting in appeal over the decision of the Court permitting sale at a particular price.

Nov 13, 2022 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH REGISTRAR OF ASSURANCES AND ANOTHER — Appellant Vs. ASL VYAPAR PRIVATE LTD. AND ANOTHER — Respondent ( Before : Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Abhay S.…

You missed

Cr P C

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Sections 209, 244 — Commitment of case exclusively triable by Court of Session — Whether Magistrate is required to record prosecution evidence under Section 244 CrPC before committing such a case, where the complaint is one instituted otherwise than on a police report — Held, no — Section 244 CrPC, which mandates the Magistrate to hear the prosecution and take evidence, occurs in Chapter XIX (Part B — “Cases instituted otherwise than on a police report”) and governs warrant-case trials before a Magistrate; it has no application where the offence (here, under Section 302 IPC) is exclusively triable by the Court of Session, which is governed instead by Section 209 CrPC — Under the scheme of the 1973 Code (unlike the erstwhile 1898 Code, which mandated a full committal inquiry with recording of evidence under Section 207-A), the Magistrate’s role at the pre-commitment stage is confined to ascertaining whether the offence is exclusively triable by the Sessions Court, and no evidence need be taken or evaluated by the Magistrate at that stage — Requiring witnesses to depose twice, once before the Magistrate and again before the Sessions Court, would serve no purpose and is not the mandate of law — High Court’s contrary view, requiring compliance with Section 244 CrPC even in a Sessions-triable case, proceeds on an erroneous reading of law and is unsustainable.

Jul 5, 2026 sclaw
Accident

Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Sections166, 168 — Compensation — Assessment of annual income of a self-employed deceased (wholesale grocery business) — Two ITRs filed after the death of the deceased excluded by the High Court altogether from the assessment of income — Held, following the principles in Rashmirekha Tripathy and Anr. v. The Branch Manager (Legal Claims), Sriram General Insurance Company Limited and Ors. [C.A. @ SLP(C) No.27220 of 2024, 2026 INSC 661], ITRs filed post-death call for closer scrutiny with reference to surrounding financial statements, since income may be inflated in such returns, but such returns are not to be excluded outright merely for being filed post-death — In the absence of the benefit of such surrounding financial statements on record, and it being inexpedient at this stage to remand the matter, annual income fixed with reference to the nature of the deceased’s wholesale grocery business at Rs.3,25,000 — Compensation recomputed applying 40% addition for future prospects (age 28 years), 1/4th deduction for personal expenses, and a multiplier of 17, together with conventional heads (loss of estate, funeral expenses, consortium) — Total compensation enhanced to Rs.60,79,550 (as against Rs.15,36,560 awarded by the Tribunal and Rs.38,40,850 awarded by the High Court), with interest as awarded by the Tribunal — Appeal allowed.

Jul 5, 2026 sclaw
Accident

Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Sections 166, 168 — Compensation — Assessment of annual income of a self-employed deceased (Insurance Agent) from Income Tax Returns — High Court had averaged the last four ITRs on record — Held, erroneous — Following the principles laid down in Rashmirekha Tripathy and Anr. v. The Branch Manager (Legal Claims), Sriram General Insurance Company Limited and Ors. [C.A. @ SLP(C) No.27220 of 2024, 2026 INSC 661], for a self-employed person the average of up to the previous three years’ ITRs, not four, is the appropriate reference point — A performance-linked spike in the income of an Insurance Agent in a particular year does not justify reaching back to an additional, earlier ITR to dilute that spike — On the facts, taking the average of the income for AY 2015-16 (Rs.4,03,180), AY 2016-17 (Rs.9,59,665) and AY 2017-18 (Rs.7,00,559), annual income assessed at Rs.6,87,802 — Compensation recomputed applying 25% addition for future prospects (age 49 years), 1/4th deduction for personal expenses, and a multiplier of 13, together with conventional heads (loss of estate, funeral expenses, consortium) — Total compensation enhanced to Rs.87,09,282 (as against Rs.49,77,000 awarded by the Tribunal and Rs.76,09,500 awarded by the High Court), with interest as awarded by the Tribunal — Appeal allowed.

Jul 5, 2026 sclaw
Accident

Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Sections 166, 168 — Compensation — Assessment of annual income of deceased/claimant on the basis of Income Tax Returns — Whether the ITR of the previous year alone, or the average of the previous two/three years, is to be taken — Held, no hard and fast formula governs computation of annual income; ITRs, being statutory documents, are an important reference point, but a bifurcation must be made between salaried and self-employed individuals — (i) For salaried individuals, the ITR of the previous year alone ordinarily suffices, since the financial impact of a promotion or salary revision is best reflected in that year’s return; where the deceased had not completed a year in a promoted position, or had not filed a return for that period, the Court may rely on the promotion letter and other corroborative financial statements; (ii) For self-employed persons/those running their own business, the average of the ITRs for up to the previous three years is to be taken as the reference point, having regard to the inherent income fluctuation in such professions — In assessing self-employed income, the surrounding circumstances to be additionally considered include: (a) the nature of the business (including geography and category); (b) its growth pattern and the impact of the death on the business; (c) its potential/future growth, including capital-intensive businesses profitable only at scale; (d) the possibility of negative income in initial years not reflecting the true financial standing; and (e) any other relevant factor — The date of filing of an ITR is also relevant, since income may be inflated after the death/injury; such returns call for closer scrutiny against surrounding financial statements, though they are not to be excluded outright merely for being filed post-death, if adequately supported.

Jul 5, 2026 sclaw