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 POCSO

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act) — Sections 3/4(2), 42 — Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Section 376(3) — Appeal against suspension of sentence by High Court — Supreme Court held High Court was not justified. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 389 — Suspension of Sentence — Scope of — High Court while considering suspension of sentence must adhere to parameters laid down in law — Prima facie satisfaction about chances of acquittal is necessary, not reappreciation of evidence or picking loopholes.

Aug 9, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 935 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH JAMNALAL Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN AND ANOTHER ( Before : B.V. Nagarathna and K. V. Viswanathan, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No…of…

I P C

Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Section 302 — Murder — Circumstantial Evidence — Conviction on circumstantial evidence requires a chain of events to be fully established, consistent only with the hypothesis of guilt, conclusive in nature, excluding all other hypotheses, and leaving no reasonable ground for innocence.

Aug 9, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 936 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SHAIL KUMARI Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH ( Before : B.R.Gavai, CJI. and K. Vinod Chandran, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No. 2189…

Accident

Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Sections 166, 173 — Compensation — Calculation of — Motor Accident Claims Tribunal — High Court — Appeals — Appellant aged 38 years— sustained grievous injuries in a road accident — High Court revised monthly income but omitted future prospects and adopted a lower disability percentage — Supreme Court allowed appeal, adding 40% for future prospects to self-employed claimants as per settled law — Supreme Court accepted neuro-psychologist’s assessment of 41.77% functional disability as it was not rebutted or doubted, overriding the lower percentage adopted by Tribunal and High Court without reasoning

Aug 9, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 939 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH LOKESH B Vs. SURYANARAYANA RAJU JAGGARAJU AND ANOTHER ( Before : Sudhanshu Dhulia and Aravind Kumar, JJ. ) Civil Appeal Nos…..of…

Electricity Act

Electricity Act, 2003 — Section 61, 62, 86 — Tariff determination — Regulatory asset — Creation, continuation, and liquidation of regulatory asset — Governed by Act, National Tariff Policies, Rules, Regulations, and APTEL precedents. – Electricity Act, 2003 — Section 61, National Tariff Policy, 2006, Clause 8.2.2 — Regulatory asset — Creation should be an exception, circumstances clearly defined, recovery time-bound within three years.

Aug 9, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 937 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH BSES RAJDHANI POWER LTD. AND ANOTHER Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS ( Before : Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Sandeep Mehta,…

Constitution

Petition by High Court Judge challenging ‘In-House Procedure’ for judicial misconduct inquiry — Petitioner sought declaration of certain paragraphs of the Procedure as unconstitutional and ultra vires — Held, the ‘In-House Procedure’ is legally sanctioned and fills a constitutional gap in disciplining judges for misconduct not amounting to impeachment — Procedure is not an extra-constitutional mechanism — Petitioner’s conduct in participating without demur and challenging post-adverse findings dis-entitled him to relief on grounds of tardiness and lack of bona fides, although Constitutional challenge itself is not waivable

Aug 9, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 943 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH XXX Vs. THE UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS ( Before : Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih, JJ. ) Writ Petition…

Constitution

Constitution of India, 1950 — Tenth Schedule, Para 6(1) — Disqualification of Members — Speaker’s authority to decide — Judicial review of Speaker’s decision — Scope of — Decision of Speaker is amenable to judicial review on grounds of jurisdictional errors, mala fides, non-compliance with natural justice, and perversity.

Aug 5, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 912 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH PADI KAUSHIK REDDY ETC. Vs. STATE OF TELANGANA AND OTHERS ETC. ( Before : B.R. Gavai, CJI. and Augustine George Masih,…

Evidence Act Juvenile Justice

Evidence Act, 1872 — Section 35 — Relevancy of entries in public records — Entries made by public servants in discharge of official duty or by other persons in performance of a duty enjoined by law are relevant facts. — Family Register maintained under the U.P. Panchayat Raj Act, 1947, and Voters’ List are considered public records and public documents. — School records from a private, though government-recognized, school are not public documents, and the headmaster is not a public servant for the purposes of Section 35.

Aug 5, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 918 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SURESH Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH AND ANOTHER ( Before : Pankaj Mithal and Ahsanuddin Amanullah, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

Labour Cases

Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 — Section 12(3) — Memorandum of Settlement — Binding nature — Clause 14 of 1979 settlement providing alternate employment for colour blind drivers held valid and enforceable despite subsequent 1986 settlement and policy circulars — 1986 settlement did not expressly supersede 1979 settlement and was general in nature, while 1979 settlement was specific to colour blindness and did not contain a termination clause, thus operating harmoniously.

Aug 5, 2025 sclaw

2025 INSC 920 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH CH. JOSEPH Vs. THE TELANGANA STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION AND OTHER ( Before : J.K. Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar, JJ. )…

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