Month: July 2025

Insurance Law — Motor Insurance Policy — Guidelines (IMT) — Guidelines issued by the Tariff Advisory Committee (IMT) regulate the issuance of policies but cannot bind the insured unless specified in the insurance policy itself. – – Personal Accident Cover — Contractual liability — Claim based on personal accident cover is a contractual liability, not a statutory one — The question is whether the liability was limited or not, which depends on the terms specified in the policy.

2025 INSC 896 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH MANJUSHA AND OTHERS Vs. UNITED INDIA ASSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sudhanshu Dhulia and K. Vinod Chandran, JJ.…

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Section 138 — Dishonour of cheque — Territorial jurisdiction — Where a payee maintains his bank account in a particular branch and deposits cheques issued by the drawer for collection through that account, the complaint for dishonour of such cheques must be filed in the court having jurisdiction over the location of the payee’s bank branch, even if the cheques were presented at a different branch of the bank for the purpose of crediting the payee’s account.

2025 INSC 897 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH PRAKASH CHIMANLAL SHETH Vs. JAGRUTI KEYUR RAJPOPAT ( Before : Sanjay Kumar and Satish Chandra Sharma, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal Nos.…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Section 200 — Complaint — Amendment — Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Section 138 — Dishonour of Cheque — Power of Criminal Court to amend complaint — Amendments not alien to Cr.P.C. even post-cognizance, provided no prejudice to accused — Supreme Court in S.R. Sukumar and Modi Distillery cases allowed amendments to correct curable infirmities, even after cognizance.

2025 INSC 899 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BANSAL MILK CHILLING CENTRE Vs. RANA MILK FOOD PRIVATE LTD. AND ANOTHER ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and K. V. Viswanathan,…

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 — Section 6 — Aggravated Penetrative sexual assault — Punishment introduced by 2019 amendment — Retrospective application — Constitution of India — Article 20(1) — Prohibition against ex-post facto laws and enhanced penalty — Offence committed before amended Act came into force — Sentencing under amended provisions violates constitutional bar against imposing greater penalty than that which was permissible at the time of commission of the offence.

2025 INSC 892 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SATAURAM MANDAVI Vs. THE STATE OF CHHATTISGARH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Section 319 — Power to proceed against other persons appearing to be guilty of offence — Application for summoning additional accused — High Court quashed summons issued against them — Whether High Court was justified — Held, no. — Evidence of eyewitnesses, though prima facie, suggested complicity of the applicant, assigning specific role and indicating presence at scene armed with weapon of offence — High Court applied standard of conviction rather than standard of satisfaction required for summoning — Standard for summoning is more than prima facie case but less than conviction — Summoning order restored.

2025 INSC 860 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SHIV BARAN Vs. STATE OF U.P. AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Joymalya Bagchi, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — Section 106 — Notice terminating tenancy — Service by registered post — Return with endorsement “ND” (Not Delivered) — General Clauses Act, 1897 — Section 27 — Deemed service — High Court set aside ejectment decree solely on ground of “ND” endorsement, misinterpreting deemed service provisions — Supreme Court held High Court erred in not considering Section 27 of GC Act regarding deemed service by registered post.

2025 INSC 859 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH KRISHNA SWAROOP AGARWAL (DEAD) THR. LR. Vs. ARVIND KUMAR ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Joymalya Bagchi, JJ. ) Civil Appeal…

Service Matters

Pension Law — Family Pension — Eligibility of ‘Substitutes’ in Railways — deceased husband of the appellant was appointed as a ‘Substitute Waterman’ and died in harness after serving for 9 years, 8 months, and 26 days — Railways denied family pension on the grounds that his service was not regularized and did not meet the 10-year qualifying period for family pension — Appellant contended that as per Indian Railway Establishment Manual Vol-I, Rule 1515 and Railway Service (Pension) Rules, 1993, especially Rule 75(2)(a), substitutes with continuous service of one year are entitled to family pension. Held, deceased had acquired temporary status and completed more than one year of continuous service, thus eligible for family pension.

2025 INSC 855 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH MALA DEVI Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Satish Chandra Sharma, JJ. ) Civil Appeal…

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006 (MSMED Act) — Section 18(2) — Conciliation proceedings — Referring time-barred claims — Time-barred claims can be referred to conciliation as the expiry of the limitation period does not extinguish the right to recover the amount, and a settlement agreement reached through conciliation is akin to a contract for repayment of a time-barred debt, recognized under Section 25(3) of the Contract Act

2025 INSC 864 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH M/S SONALI POWER EQUIPMENTS PVT. LTD. Vs. CHAIRMAN, MAHARASHTRA STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD, MUMBAI AND OTHERS ( Before : Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha…

Succession Act, 1925, Sections 63, 68 — Indian Evidence Act, 1872, Section 68 — Proof of Will — Propounder has to prove due execution and dispel suspicious circumstances — Suspicious circumstances include shaky signature, feeble mind, unfair disposition, propounder benefiting significantly — Absence of reasoned disinheritance of natural heir, especially wife, qualifies as a suspicious circumstance — Such omission raises doubt about free disposing mind of testator.

2025 INSC 866 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH GURDIAL SINGH (DEAD) THROUGH LR Vs. JAGIR KAUR (DEAD) AND ANOTHER ETC ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Joymalya Bagchi, JJ.…

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