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Supreme Court of India· 10 September 2026

Is a decision authority only for the points that arose on its own facts, and not for conclusions that merely appear similar?

REGIONAL PROVIDENT FUND COMMISSIONER-II v. MS. MAMTA BINANI & ORS
2026 INSC 1003
Coram: Justice Dipankar Datta · Justice Sheel Nagu
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Answer

A decision is authority only for the points that arose on its own facts, not for conclusions that merely appear similar.

Yes. A decision is authority only for the points that arose on its own facts, not for conclusions that merely appear similar. The Court quoted the 3-Judge Bench in Regional Manager v. Pawan Kumar Dubey that the ratio decidendi is the rule deducible from the application of law to the facts and circumstances of a case, and not some conclusion based upon facts which may appear similar; one additional or different fact can make a world of difference between conclusions in two cases even where the same principles are applied. On this basis, National Spot Exchange Ltd. and Tata Steel Ltd., though correctly decided on their own facts, had no application to the stark difference in facts of the present appeal. (¶10, 11, 12)

Headnote

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 — s.61(2) — Limitation — Actus curiae neminem gravabit — Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Order VII Rule 6 — Condonation of delay — Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 — s.61(2) — Tribunal's own system failure — Held: A litigant must not be denied remedy for e-filing an appeal a day beyond Section 61(2)'s condonable limit where delay is caused by the tribunal's own e-filing failure. The remedy lies in actus curiae neminem gravabit, not an enlarged condoning power. (¶13, 19) Actus curiae neminem gravabit — Limitation runs only when tribunal is functional — Held further: Limitation runs against a litigant only when the court or tribunal is open and functional to receive papers presented bona fide and in time. A litigant cannot be left remediless where the tribunal's own system failed to receive a timely, bona fide filing. (¶19) Ratio decidendi — Precedent confined to its own facts — Held further: A decision is authority only for the points that arose on its own facts, not for conclusions that merely appear similar. National Spot Exchange Ltd. and Tata Steel Ltd. accordingly had no application to the stark difference in facts here. (¶10, 11, 12) Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Order VII Rule 6 — Applied to IBC by analogy — Held further: Principles of Order VII Rule 6, Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 can be invoked in an appropriate case under the IBC though that Code does not otherwise apply. The NCLAT ought to have treated the appellant's first bona fide e-filing attempt as the date of presentation. Appeal allowed; NCLAT's order set aside and the condonation application restored for reconsideration. (¶20, 23, 24)

Headnote

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In the Court's own words
Paragraph 10In National Spot Exchange Ltd. (supra), hardship of the party was held not to afford any ground for the aggrieved litigant to approach the NCLAT beyond the period prescribed having regard to the plain words of the statute. Tata Steel Ltd. (supra) was a decision dealing with a situation where a minority shareholder had, owing to his own incorrect understanding of the law of limitation, belatedly filed an appeal before the NCLAT challenging an order of the relevant NCLT approving the resolution plan. These are decisions, which are authorities for the points which emerged for decisions therein and were decided accordingly.
Paragraph 11At this stage, we may profitably refer to Regional Manager v. Pawan Kumar Dubey[^11] where it has authoritatively been ruled by a 3-Judge Bench that: 7. … It is the rule deducible from the application of law to the facts and circumstances of a case which constitutes its ratio decidendi and not some conclusion based upon facts which may appear to be similar. One additional or different fact can make a world of difference between conclusions in two cases even when the same principles are applied in each case to similar facts.
Paragraph 12In view of the stark difference in facts of the present appeal, neither the law laid down in National Spot Exchange Ltd. (supra) nor Tata Steel Ltd. (supra) did have any application on facts and in the circumstances and reliance placed thereon by the NCLAT appears to be wholly misconceived.
Acts & Sections
Section 61(2) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016Section 61(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016Order VII Rule 6 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908

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Also decided in this judgment
Whether a litigant should be shown the door for e-filing an appeal beyond the statutorily condonable period where the delay was for bona fide reasons beyond the litigant's control and the fault lay entirely with the Registry of the NCLAT?Does limitation run against a litigant only while the court or tribunal is open and able to receive papers presented bona fide and in time?Can principles of Order VII Rule 6, Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 be invoked in an appropriate case under the IBC?
Plain-language answer prepared by the LexStreak Editorial Desk — verify against the judgment. Source: Supreme Court of India. Corrections