A judge can revise a judgment if they later feel they made the wrong call.

A judge cannot review or alter the substance of a signed judgment -- only clerical or arithmetical errors can be corrected; any real change must come through an appeal or revision to a higher court.

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023

Section 403

Court not to alter judgment

Save as otherwise provided by this Sanhita or by any other law for the time being in force, no Court, when it has signed its judgment or final order disposing of a case, shall alter or review the same except to correct a clerical or arithmetical error.§

Why this exists

This rule protects the finality of judgments. Once a court has decided a case and signed the judgment, both sides need certainty that the decision will stand -- otherwise trials could drag on forever with judges repeatedly reconsidering their own rulings. The narrow exception for clerical or arithmetical slips lets courts fix obvious typos or number errors without reopening the substance of the case. This is a long-standing rule that continues largely unchanged from section 362 of the CrPC, 1973.

Common misconceptions

Myth: A judge can revise a judgment if they later feel they made the wrong call.
Fact: A judge cannot review or alter the substance of a signed judgment -- only clerical or arithmetical errors can be corrected; any real change must come through an appeal or revision to a higher court.