Writ Petition Under Article 226: Grounds and Structure
Article 226 empowers every High Court to issue writs for enforcement of fundamental rights and for any other purpose — wider in scope than Article 32 (which lies before the Supreme Court).
The five writs
- Habeas Corpus — produce a person unlawfully detained
- Mandamus — command a public authority to perform a public duty
- Certiorari — quash an order passed without jurisdiction
- Prohibition — restrain a lower court from exceeding jurisdiction
- Quo Warranto — question authority by which a person holds public office
Common grounds of judicial review
- Illegality — authority acted beyond its legal powers
- Irrationality — decision is so unreasonable no reasonable authority would reach it
- Procedural impropriety — breach of natural justice or mandatory procedure
- Violation of fundamental rights or constitutional guarantees