Supreme Court of India Judgements

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Environment Law — Environmental Clearance — Prior clearance — Mandatory character — Prior environmental clearance under EIA Notification, 2006 is mandatory, being founded on the precautionary principle and couched in imperative terms — Word “prior” and the graded four-stage screening, scoping, public consultation and appraisal process render an anterior assessment the sine qua non of the clearance regime — Decriminalisation of contraventions under Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 does not alter this mandatory character. Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS) Income Tax Act, 1961 — Section 44B — “Carriage” of passengers — Meaning and scope of — Cruise operations by non-resident shipping entity — Held, the word “carriage” under Section 44B cannot be restrictively construed to mean movement only from Port A to Port B. A round-trip cruise voyage, where passengers have the option to disembark at intermediate ports without compulsion to return to the originating port, constitutes carriage of passengers within the meaning of Section 44B. Provision of incidental on-board entertainment and hospitality does not alter the essential character of the activity as carriage of passengers. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR — Scope of inquiry — Mini-trial impermissible — At the stage of considering quashing of an FIR, the Court’s inquiry is confined to whether the allegations, taken at face value, prima facie disclose commission of a cognizable offence — Court cannot conduct a “mini-trial” by sifting evidence, assessing probabilities, or evaluating witness credibility — High Court exceeding these limits by examining trap proceedings, absence of personal recovery, and departmental enquiry findings, held impermissible. Succession Act, 1925 — Sections 33, 35 and 38 — Hindu/Christian Succession — Applicability of S. 33 confined to property owned by deceased male; erroneous application by High Court set aside — Where property was purchased and registered in the joint names of two wives, the same is owned by them and not by the husband, notwithstanding that he provided the consideration — Section 33, which governs devolution on intestacy of a male’s property between his widow and lineal descendants, is not attracted to property never vested in the husband’s name — High Court’s application of S. 33 to the entirety of the suit property held misconceived.
Environment

Environment Law — Environmental Clearance — Prior clearance — Mandatory character — Prior environmental clearance under EIA Notification, 2006 is mandatory, being founded on the precautionary principle and couched in imperative terms — Word “prior” and the graded four-stage screening, scoping, public consultation and appraisal process render an anterior assessment the sine qua non of the clearance regime — Decriminalisation of contraventions under Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 does not alter this mandatory character.

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw
Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita Cr P C

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS)

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw
Environment Law — Environmental Clearance — Prior clearance — Mandatory character — Prior environmental clearance under EIA Notification, 2006 is mandatory, being founded on the precautionary principle and couched in imperative terms — Word “prior” and the graded four-stage screening, scoping, public consultation and appraisal process render an anterior assessment the sine qua non of the clearance regime — Decriminalisation of contraventions under Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 does not alter this mandatory character.
Environment
Environment Law — Environmental Clearance — Prior clearance — Mandatory character — Prior environmental clearance under EIA Notification, 2006 is mandatory, being founded on the precautionary principle and couched in imperative terms — Word “prior” and the graded four-stage screening, scoping, public consultation and appraisal process render an anterior assessment the sine qua non of the clearance regime — Decriminalisation of contraventions under Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 does not alter this mandatory character.
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS)
Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita Cr P C
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS)
Income Tax Act, 1961 — Section 44B — “Carriage” of passengers — Meaning and scope of — Cruise operations by non-resident shipping entity — Held, the word “carriage” under Section 44B cannot be restrictively construed to mean movement only from Port A to Port B. A round-trip cruise voyage, where passengers have the option to disembark at intermediate ports without compulsion to return to the originating port, constitutes carriage of passengers within the meaning of Section 44B. Provision of incidental on-board entertainment and hospitality does not alter the essential character of the activity as carriage of passengers.
Direct Taxation Income Tax Act
Income Tax Act, 1961 — Section 44B — “Carriage” of passengers — Meaning and scope of — Cruise operations by non-resident shipping entity — Held, the word “carriage” under Section 44B cannot be restrictively construed to mean movement only from Port A to Port B. A round-trip cruise voyage, where passengers have the option to disembark at intermediate ports without compulsion to return to the originating port, constitutes carriage of passengers within the meaning of Section 44B. Provision of incidental on-board entertainment and hospitality does not alter the essential character of the activity as carriage of passengers.
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR — Scope of inquiry — Mini-trial impermissible — At the stage of considering quashing of an FIR, the Court’s inquiry is confined to whether the allegations, taken at face value, prima facie disclose commission of a cognizable offence — Court cannot conduct a “mini-trial” by sifting evidence, assessing probabilities, or evaluating witness credibility — High Court exceeding these limits by examining trap proceedings, absence of personal recovery, and departmental enquiry findings, held impermissible.
Cr P C
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR — Scope of inquiry — Mini-trial impermissible — At the stage of considering quashing of an FIR, the Court’s inquiry is confined to whether the allegations, taken at face value, prima facie disclose commission of a cognizable offence — Court cannot conduct a “mini-trial” by sifting evidence, assessing probabilities, or evaluating witness credibility — High Court exceeding these limits by examining trap proceedings, absence of personal recovery, and departmental enquiry findings, held impermissible.
Cr P C

Criminal Procedure — Institution of FIR — Quashing of FIR — Abuse of process of law — High Court quashed FIR based only on Section 17A of the PC Act, 1988, without considering other grounds raised by the accused — Supreme Court finds this approach incomplete and remands the matter for reconsideration of all grounds, emphasizing that procedural lapses like failure to obtain prior approval, if applicable, can render an FIR void ab initio.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SURENDRA DHARIWAL Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN AND ANOTHER ETC RESPONDENT(S) ( Before : J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal Nos. 3717-3718…

Constitution

Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 32 — Writ jurisdiction for enforcement of Fundamental Rights — Death sentence cases — Article 32 as continuing safeguard even after conventional judicial process has concluded — Power to intervene under Article 32 to prevent constitutional breach when human life hangs in the balance. Finality of Judgments — Reopening of concluded matters — Article 32 available to remedy grievances when fundamental rights are violated — Curative petition limitations — Exception for miscarriage of justice and perpetuation of irremediable injustice.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1043 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH VASANTA SAMPAT DUPARE Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS ( Before : Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. )…

C P C

Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) — Order 21 Rule 90 & Section 47 — Setting aside of sale — Application for — Delay — HC correctly held that application to set aside sale was barred by limitation as it was filed almost two years three months after the sale, and Section 5 of Limitation Act does not apply to proceedings under Order XXI.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1040 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SRI R RAGHU Vs. SRI G M KRISHNA AND ANOTHER ( Before : Vikram Nath and Prasanna B. Varale, JJ. )…

Cr P C

Criminal Procedure — Delay in Judgment Pronouncement — Supreme Court directs High Courts to adhere to existing guidelines for timely pronouncement of reserved judgments and reiterates specific directions for cases where judgment is not delivered within three months of being reserved, including placing the matter before the Chief Justice for reassignment if not pronounced within two weeks thereafter.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1039 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH RAVINDRA PRATAP SHAHI Vs. STATE OF U.P. AND OTHERS ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra, JJ. ) Criminal…

Evidence Act Partition

Family Law — Partition Suit — Evidence — Testimony of a credible witness with special means of knowledge, coupled with presumption of marriage from prolonged cohabitation and absence of rebuttal by the opposing party, is sufficient to establish a valid marital relationship and grant a decree for partition.- Evidence Act, 1872 — Section 50 — Opinion on relationship, when relevant — Testimony of a witness with special means of knowledge of the relationship, including opinion expressed by conduct, is relevant — Witness resided in the same village, had long-standing familiarity, and spoke from personal observation, thus satisfying the requirement of special means of knowledge.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1038 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH CHOWDAMMA (D) BY LR AND ANOTHER Vs. VENKATAPPA (D) BY LRS AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar…

Arbitration

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Section 45 — Reference to arbitration — Existence of arbitration agreement — Contract not signed by one party — Parties acted upon the contract, including lifting goods and issuing Letters of Credit — Emails confirming terms and modifications — Held, agreement to arbitrate is inferred from conduct and electronic communications, even without signatures — Mere failure to sign does not invalidate the arbitration agreement if parties’ conduct demonstrates acceptance of terms.

Sep 2, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1036 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH GLENCORE INTERNATIONAL AG Vs. M/S. SHREE GANESH METALS AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sanjay Kumar and Satish Chandra Sharma, JJ. )…

Arbitration

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Sections 47 and 49 — Enforcement of Foreign Award — High Court found no grounds to refuse recognition of the award and held it enforceable, subject to RBI approval — Supreme Court agreed with this conclusion and directed execution proceedings to proceed.

Aug 31, 2025 sclaw

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH GPE (INDIA) LTD AND OTHERS Vs. TWARIT CONSULTANCY SERVICES PRIVATE LIMITED AND ANOTHER ( Before : J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan, JJ. ) Petition(s)…

POCSO

Goa Children’s Act, 2003 — Section 8(2) and Section 2(m) — Child Abuse — Conviction unsustainable — Accused allegedly casually hit injured child with own son’s school bag — No evidence of deliberate maltreatment, cruelty, exploitation or ill-treatment intended to cause harm — Act exceeded mere incidental quarrel — Medical examination could not rule out possibility of injury from fall — High Court also reduced sentence substantially — Held, conviction for child abuse not made out.

Aug 31, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1041 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SANTOSH SAHADEV KHAJNEKAR Vs. THE STATE OF GOA ( Before : Sanjay Karol and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No(s).…

I P C

Penal Code, 1860 — Sections 302, 376(2)(g), 201 – Conviction and sentence for rape and murder – Appeal against – Circumstantial evidence – Prosecution failed to establish complete chain of incriminating circumstances beyond reasonable doubt – Testimony of prosecution witnesses contained contradictions and improbabilities – Suspicious conduct of accused attributed as improvement – Reliance on DNA reports found unjustified due to failure to establish sanctity and chain of custody of samples – Supplementary DNA report inadmissible as expert was not recalled and report not put to accused.

Aug 31, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 1042 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH PUTAI Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH ( Before : Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol and Sandeep Mehta, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No(s).…

You missed

Environment

Environment Law — Environmental Clearance — Prior clearance — Mandatory character — Prior environmental clearance under EIA Notification, 2006 is mandatory, being founded on the precautionary principle and couched in imperative terms — Word “prior” and the graded four-stage screening, scoping, public consultation and appraisal process render an anterior assessment the sine qua non of the clearance regime — Decriminalisation of contraventions under Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 does not alter this mandatory character.

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw
Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita Cr P C

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — Section 415 — Appeal — Maintainability — Conviction recorded for first time by appellate court reversing acquittal — An appeal under Section 374 CrPC (Section 415 BNSS) is not maintainable against a judgment of conviction recorded by a Sessions Court while exercising appellate jurisdiction and reversing an order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court — No such second appeal is contemplated under CrPC or BNSS — The only remedy available is revision under Section 397 r/w 401 CrPC (Section 438 r/w 442 BNSS)

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw
Direct Taxation Income Tax Act

Income Tax Act, 1961 — Section 44B — “Carriage” of passengers — Meaning and scope of — Cruise operations by non-resident shipping entity — Held, the word “carriage” under Section 44B cannot be restrictively construed to mean movement only from Port A to Port B. A round-trip cruise voyage, where passengers have the option to disembark at intermediate ports without compulsion to return to the originating port, constitutes carriage of passengers within the meaning of Section 44B. Provision of incidental on-board entertainment and hospitality does not alter the essential character of the activity as carriage of passengers.

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw
Cr P C

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR — Scope of inquiry — Mini-trial impermissible — At the stage of considering quashing of an FIR, the Court’s inquiry is confined to whether the allegations, taken at face value, prima facie disclose commission of a cognizable offence — Court cannot conduct a “mini-trial” by sifting evidence, assessing probabilities, or evaluating witness credibility — High Court exceeding these limits by examining trap proceedings, absence of personal recovery, and departmental enquiry findings, held impermissible.

Aug 2, 2026 sclaw