This volume of the Supreme Court Cases (SCC), Part 2 of Volume 10, embodies landmark cases decided by the Supreme Court on principle of national fraternity, contempt of court by advocates, Goa Code of Comunidades, contributory negligence, and more.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — S. 9: Propriety of interim order of High Court under Art. 227 of the Constitution, directing non-encashment of bank guarantee till the disposal of S. 9 application by Commercial Court, determined, [Jindal Steel & Power Ltd. v. Bansal Infra Projects (P) Ltd., (2025) 10 SCC 176]
Civil Procedure Code, 1908 — Or. 7 R. 11 and S. 11 and Or. 9 R. 13 & Expln. thereto — Rejection of plaint — Bar of res judicata: Plea of res judicata cannot be decided in an application filed under Or. 7 R. 11 for rejection of a plaint. Res judicata is an issue to be decided in trial and cannot be summarily decided in an application to reject plaint, [Pandurangan v. T. Jayarama Chettiar, (2025) 10 SCC 279]
Constitution of India — Preamble and Art. 226 — Judicial review — Relevant considerations — Principle of fraternity: Principle of national fraternity, upheld. Benefit of extension of retirement age cannot be denied on parochial grounds, [Subha Prasad Nandi Majumdar v. State of W.B., (2025) 10 SCC 253]
Consumer Protection — Services — Insurance — Insurance claim for truck on ground of fire: In this case, truck caught fire on account of short-circuit. Claim was dismissed by National Commission on ground that there was no valid permit for truck due to not having paid authorisation fee. It was observed that National permit of truck in question was valid up to 13-10-2017. Authorisation fee was required to be paid only when truck was moving out of State of Bihar as it was registered in State of Bihar and truck caught fire on account of short-circuit on 8-6-2014 in State of Bihar itself. Therefore, respondent Company could not have repudiated claim on such a frivolous ground, [Binod Kumar Singh v. National Insurance Co. Ltd., (2025) 10 SCC 173]
Contempt of Court — Nature and Scope — Contempt by advocates — Criminal contempt by advocates and their client: Advocates found guilty of criminal contempt by facilitating the obstruction of justice and breach of professional duty expected of an advocate, [N. Eswaranathan v. State, (2025) 10 SCC 188]
Education Law — Employment and Service Matters re Educational Institutions — Gratuity: Law clarified on entitlement to gratuity, in government aided private school, whether under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 or the Maharashtra Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1982, [Vikram Bhalchandra Ghongade v. Girls High School & Junior College, (2025) 10 SCC 248]
Environment Law — Regulatory Framework, Bodies and Judicial Intervention — Abuse of Process of Court/Law/Fraud on Court — Setting up a petrol pump at certain place — Prayer before NGT for restraining respondents from setting up petrol pump in question: Costs of Rs 50,000 imposed as proceedings before NGT not only initiated to subserve business interest of one of the appellants, but appellants also suppressed the initiation of parallel proceedings before High Court, [Arun Kumar Sharma v. State of M.P., (2025) 10 SCC 217]
Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 — S. 25-O — Closure/Closure of Undertaking: Validity of right to closure of business/undertaking and reasonable restrictions thereon, upheld, [Harinagar Sugar Mills Ltd. v. State of Maharashtra, (2025) 10 SCC 286]
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — S. 168 — Compensation — Determination: Validity of non-consideration of agricultural income of deceased while computation of compensation, determined, [Suhagrani v. Cholamandalam Ms General Insurance Co. Ltd., (2025) 10 SCC 241]
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — S. 168 — Contributory negligence — Determination of proportion: Determination of proportion of contributory negligence in motor accident claim, [S. Mohammed Hakkim v. National Insurance Co. Ltd., (2025) 10 SCC 263]
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Ss. 168 and 176 — Compensation to be paid to claimants awarded by MAC Tribunals: Directions issued to ensure that compensation paid to claimants under the Motor Vehicles Act or the Employees’ Compensation Act, 1923, is directly credited to their bank accounts, [Compensation Amounts Deposited with Motor Accident Claims Tribunals & Labour Courts, In re, (2025) 10 SCC 167]
Partnership Act, 1932 — S. 42 — When applicable — Clarified — Supply of kerosene oil by IOCL to partnership firm of three members — Death of one of partners of firm: IOCL’s insistence on including all heirs in reconstituted firm is illegal, arbitrary and contrary to its own guidelines. Under partnership deed and Partnership Act, surviving partners could continue business and induct any competent heir. IOCL should have facilitated business continuity rather than adopting a hyper-technical approach, [Indian Oil Corpn. Ltd. v. Shree Niwas Ramgopal, (2025) 10 SCC 269]
Tenancy and Land Laws — Goa Code of Comunidades — Arts. 30(4)(g) and 154(3) — Scope and effect of Art. 30(4)(g): Art. 30(4)(g) merely empowers a Communidade to deliberate upon terms of compromise, which upon finalisation, has to be forwarded to the Administrative Tribunal. By no stretch of imagination can this provision be construed to mean that it confers an unfettered power on the Communidade to enter into a compromise, without the Tribunal’s sanction, [Communidade of Tivim v. State of Goa, (2025) 10 SCC 233]