Supreme Court of India Judgements

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Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Sections 138 & 141 — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Part III (Personal Insolvency) — Moratorium Provisions — Criminal Proceedings vs. Civil Liability — Dishonour of cheque is a criminal offence due to specific deeming fiction in Section 138, not merely a civil wrong for debt recovery, even though it arises from a debt — Held, moratorium under IBC Part III does not stay criminal proceedings under Section 138 of NI Act. Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Appellant’s claim that LoIs were conditional due to clauses concerning pending judicial orders and staff/employee litigation rejected — NCLT and NCLAT found appellant was aware of these issues and discussions in CoC meetings — Appellant’s arguments of conditional LoI were considered an “after-thought” and an attempt to renege from the plan. Central Excise Act, 1944 — Section 2(f) — Manufacture — Two-fold test — For an activity to be considered “manufacture,” it must result in new, distinct goods with a new identity, character, or use (transformation test), and these resultant goods must be marketable — Both tests must be satisfied. –Section 35L(2) — Amendment retrospectivity — Amendment clarifying that taxability or excisability of goods is included in “determination of any question having a relation to the rate of duty” is clarificatory and retrospective in nature. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of criminal proceedings — High Court’s power to quash proceedings is distinct from compounding offences under Section 320 CrPC and can be invoked even for non-compoundable offences — Inherent power to be exercised to secure ends of justice or prevent abuse of process of court — Nature and gravity of offence to be considered — Heinous offences generally not quashed, but cases with overwhelming civil flavour, particularly arising from commercial/financial transactions, may be quashed if parties have settled disputes and conviction is remote, to prevent oppression and injustice. Service Law — Termination of probationer — Regulation 16(3)(a) of Vijaya Bank (Officers’) Regulations, 1982 — Termination simpliciter vs — punitive termination — Termination deemed punitive if based on allegations of misconduct without due process, even if framed as unsatisfactory performance — Bank’s attempt to terminate for misconduct shifted to termination for unsatisfactory performance to bypass inquiry, rendering it unsustainable.
Cheque Dishonour I B C

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Sections 138 & 141 — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Part III (Personal Insolvency) — Moratorium Provisions — Criminal Proceedings vs. Civil Liability — Dishonour of cheque is a criminal offence due to specific deeming fiction in Section 138, not merely a civil wrong for debt recovery, even though it arises from a debt — Held, moratorium under IBC Part III does not stay criminal proceedings under Section 138 of NI Act.

May 31, 2026 sclaw
I B C

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Appellant’s claim that LoIs were conditional due to clauses concerning pending judicial orders and staff/employee litigation rejected — NCLT and NCLAT found appellant was aware of these issues and discussions in CoC meetings — Appellant’s arguments of conditional LoI were considered an “after-thought” and an attempt to renege from the plan.

May 31, 2026 sclaw
Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Sections 138 & 141 — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Part III (Personal Insolvency) — Moratorium Provisions — Criminal Proceedings vs. Civil Liability — Dishonour of cheque is a criminal offence due to specific deeming fiction in Section 138, not merely a civil wrong for debt recovery, even though it arises from a debt — Held, moratorium under IBC Part III does not stay criminal proceedings under Section 138 of NI Act.
Cheque Dishonour I B C
Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Sections 138 & 141 — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Part III (Personal Insolvency) — Moratorium Provisions — Criminal Proceedings vs. Civil Liability — Dishonour of cheque is a criminal offence due to specific deeming fiction in Section 138, not merely a civil wrong for debt recovery, even though it arises from a debt — Held, moratorium under IBC Part III does not stay criminal proceedings under Section 138 of NI Act.
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Appellant’s claim that LoIs were conditional due to clauses concerning pending judicial orders and staff/employee litigation rejected — NCLT and NCLAT found appellant was aware of these issues and discussions in CoC meetings — Appellant’s arguments of conditional LoI were considered an “after-thought” and an attempt to renege from the plan.
I B C
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Appellant’s claim that LoIs were conditional due to clauses concerning pending judicial orders and staff/employee litigation rejected — NCLT and NCLAT found appellant was aware of these issues and discussions in CoC meetings — Appellant’s arguments of conditional LoI were considered an “after-thought” and an attempt to renege from the plan.
Central Excise Act, 1944 — Section 2(f) — Manufacture — Two-fold test — For an activity to be considered “manufacture,” it must result in new, distinct goods with a new identity, character, or use (transformation test), and these resultant goods must be marketable — Both tests must be satisfied. –Section 35L(2) — Amendment retrospectivity — Amendment clarifying that taxability or excisability of goods is included in “determination of any question having a relation to the rate of duty” is clarificatory and retrospective in nature.
Customs & Excise
Central Excise Act, 1944 — Section 2(f) — Manufacture — Two-fold test — For an activity to be considered “manufacture,” it must result in new, distinct goods with a new identity, character, or use (transformation test), and these resultant goods must be marketable — Both tests must be satisfied. –Section 35L(2) — Amendment retrospectivity — Amendment clarifying that taxability or excisability of goods is included in “determination of any question having a relation to the rate of duty” is clarificatory and retrospective in nature.
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of criminal proceedings — High Court’s power to quash proceedings is distinct from compounding offences under Section 320 CrPC and can be invoked even for non-compoundable offences — Inherent power to be exercised to secure ends of justice or prevent abuse of process of court — Nature and gravity of offence to be considered — Heinous offences generally not quashed, but cases with overwhelming civil flavour, particularly arising from commercial/financial transactions, may be quashed if parties have settled disputes and conviction is remote, to prevent oppression and injustice.
I P C
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of criminal proceedings — High Court’s power to quash proceedings is distinct from compounding offences under Section 320 CrPC and can be invoked even for non-compoundable offences — Inherent power to be exercised to secure ends of justice or prevent abuse of process of court — Nature and gravity of offence to be considered — Heinous offences generally not quashed, but cases with overwhelming civil flavour, particularly arising from commercial/financial transactions, may be quashed if parties have settled disputes and conviction is remote, to prevent oppression and injustice.
Cr P C

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Quashing of proceedings — Abuse of process of law — Allegations of sexual offence against father and uncle of prosecutrix — Held, complaint lacked specific factual details and material evidence to establish a prima facie case — Wide-ranging matrimonial litigation between parties indicated a possibility of vexatious litigation and abuse of process — Mere bald allegations without supporting evidence, particularly lack of medical reports for allegations of rape and sexual assault, held insufficient to sustain criminal prosecution, especially where statements of prosecutrix and complainant were verbatim reproductions, suggesting tutoring — Court can quash proceedings under Section 482 CrPC if no offence is made out or allegations are absurd/inherently improbable, or instituted with malafide intent for vengeance

May 31, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 587 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH ISHWAR CHAND SHARMA AND OTHERS Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan, JJ.…

Corporate SEBI

Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956 (SCRA) — Section 18A — Validity of derivative contracts — Breach of position limits under SEBI Circular 2001 does not render derivative contracts void — The Circular mandates disclosure of positions exceeding limits and imposes penalties for non-disclosure, not voiding of contracts — Therefore, breach of position limits does not invalidate trades under Section 18A.

May 31, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 585 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH RELIANCE INDUSTRIES LIMITED AND OTHERS Vs. THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA ( Before : J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan,…

Direct Taxation Income Tax

the reasoning in the impugned judgment that the non-obstante clause would not in any manner dilute or override the employer’s obligation to deposit the amounts retained by it or deducted by it from the employee’s income, unless the condition that it is deposited on or before the due date, is correct and justified. The non-obstante clause has to be understood in the context of the entire provision of Section 43B which is to ensure timely payment before the returns are filed, of certain liabilities which are to be borne by the assessee in the form of tax, interest payment and other statutory liability. I

May 28, 2026 sclaw

CHECKMATE SERVICES P. LIMITED — Appellant Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX-1 — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit, CJI, S. Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia, JJ. ) Civil Appeal…

Anticipatory Bail Bail Declined

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 438 — Anticipatory Bail — Grant of — Grounds for — High Court granted anticipatory bail based on reasons that one co-owner was abroad during agreement execution, agreement was only notarized and not registered, part payment received, and complainant sought refund indicating civil dispute — Supreme Court found these reasons to be peripheral and not bearing direct nexus to parameters governing anticipatory bail — Seriousness of allegations, criminal antecedents, and requirements of investigation in economic offence were overlooked by High Court.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 548 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SAURABH AGRAWAL Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Prashant Kumar Mishra and N.V. Anjaria, JJ. ) Criminal…

Cheque Dishonour

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (NI Act) — Sections 138 and 141 — Quashing of criminal proceedings — Vicarious liability of office bearers — For a person other than the drawer or signatory of a dishonoured cheque to be prosecuted under Section 141 of the NI Act, it must be specifically averred in the complaint that such person was in charge of and responsible for the conduct of the business of the company or society at the time the offence was committed.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH M/S MANSI FINANCE (CHENNAI) LTD. Vs. M. LALITHA AND OTHERS ( Before : Prashant Kumar Mishra and N.V. Anjaria, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

Arbitration

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Sections 34 and 37 — Scope of powers of Court to set aside or modify arbitral award — Modification of award is a limited power compared to annulment, aimed at achieving more just outcomes and avoiding hardship and delay, especially in India where litigation takes years — Appellate jurisdiction under Section 37 is coterminous with and as broad as jurisdiction under Section 34.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 546 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BHUPESH BHAYANA AND ANOTHER Vs. KUNAL SETH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Kumar and K. Vinod Chandran, JJ. ) Civil…

C P C

Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) — Order 6 Rule 7 — Pleadings should not raise new claims or inconsistent allegations — A defendant cannot retract their initial stand taken in the written statement and introduce a completely new and contradictory case, especially after issues have been framed and the trial has commenced.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 545 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH MONDIRA GHOSH Vs. CHAITALI GHOSH ( Before : Sanjay Kumar and K. Vinod Chandran, JJ. ) Civil Appeal No………………of 2026 (@…

Service Matters
Service

Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964 — Railway Services (Conduct) Rules, 1966 — Proviso to Rule 1(3) of CCS (Conduct) Rules clarifies that railway servants are Government servants, though different rules apply — Separate service rules are for administrative convenience and do not change their status.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 562 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BENCY JOHN Vs. KERALA STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD LTD AND OTHERS ( Before : Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma, JJ. )…

State Laws

Societies Registration Act, 1860 — West Bengal Societies Registration Act, 1961 — Governing documents — By-laws — Clause 24 — Delegation of authority — Majority resolution — A resolution by majority of trustees in writing is valid and effectual as if passed at a meeting of trustees.

May 28, 2026 sclaw

2026 INSC 554 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH HINDUSTAN MEDICAL INSTITUTION Vs. BIRLA CORPORATION LIMITED AND OTHERS ( Before : Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Civil Appeal…

You missed

Cheque Dishonour I B C

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — Sections 138 & 141 — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Part III (Personal Insolvency) — Moratorium Provisions — Criminal Proceedings vs. Civil Liability — Dishonour of cheque is a criminal offence due to specific deeming fiction in Section 138, not merely a civil wrong for debt recovery, even though it arises from a debt — Held, moratorium under IBC Part III does not stay criminal proceedings under Section 138 of NI Act.

May 31, 2026 sclaw
I B C

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Appellant’s claim that LoIs were conditional due to clauses concerning pending judicial orders and staff/employee litigation rejected — NCLT and NCLAT found appellant was aware of these issues and discussions in CoC meetings — Appellant’s arguments of conditional LoI were considered an “after-thought” and an attempt to renege from the plan.

May 31, 2026 sclaw
Customs & Excise

Central Excise Act, 1944 — Section 2(f) — Manufacture — Two-fold test — For an activity to be considered “manufacture,” it must result in new, distinct goods with a new identity, character, or use (transformation test), and these resultant goods must be marketable — Both tests must be satisfied. –Section 35L(2) — Amendment retrospectivity — Amendment clarifying that taxability or excisability of goods is included in “determination of any question having a relation to the rate of duty” is clarificatory and retrospective in nature.

May 31, 2026 sclaw
I P C

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of criminal proceedings — High Court’s power to quash proceedings is distinct from compounding offences under Section 320 CrPC and can be invoked even for non-compoundable offences — Inherent power to be exercised to secure ends of justice or prevent abuse of process of court — Nature and gravity of offence to be considered — Heinous offences generally not quashed, but cases with overwhelming civil flavour, particularly arising from commercial/financial transactions, may be quashed if parties have settled disputes and conviction is remote, to prevent oppression and injustice.

May 31, 2026 sclaw