Writs and the Right to Constitutional Remedies

Article 32

• Guarantees the right to move the Supreme Court for enforcement of Fundamental Rights. Dr B. R. Ambedkar called it the "heart and soul" of the Constitution.
• High Courts issue writs under Article 226 — wider scope, as they can enforce FRs and other legal rights.

The five writs

Writ	Meaning	Purpose
Habeas corpus	"to have the body"	Release from unlawful detention (against public and private persons)
Mandamus	"we command"	Orders a public official/body to perform a public duty (not against the President, Governors or private persons)
Prohibition	"to forbid"	Higher court stops a lower court/tribunal from exceeding jurisdiction (preventive)
Certiorari	"to be certified"	Quashes an order already passed by a lower court/tribunal (curative)
Quo warranto	"by what authority"	Questions a person's right to hold a public office

Suspension during emergency

During a National Emergency, the President may suspend the right to move courts for FRs (Article 359), except Articles 20 and 21 (after the 44th Amendment, 1978).

Prelims pointers

1. Parliament can empower other courts to issue writs (Article 32(3)); it has not done so yet.
2. Prohibition is only against judicial/quasi-judicial bodies; certiorari has been extended to administrative authorities affecting rights.

Analogy

Writs are the Supreme Court's toolkit, each tool for a different fault. Habeas corpus is the key that unlocks an illegal lock-up; mandamus is the alarm that wakes a sleeping official; prohibition is the stop sign before a court oversteps; certiorari is the eraser that wipes out a wrong order; quo warranto asks an intruder, "Who gave you this chair?"