Writs & Their Types

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As per the Right to Constitutional Remedies-Articles 32-35, A citizen has right to move to the courts for securing the fundamental rights. Citizens can go to the Supreme Court or the high Courts for getting their fundamental rights enforced. It empowers the Courts to issue directions or orders or writs for this purpose.
Types of Writs:

1. Habeas corpus means “to have the body .“ It is in the nature of an order calling upon a person who has unlawfully detained another person to produce the latter before the court.
2. Mandamus literally means command. It is thus an order of a superior court commanding a person holding a public office or a public authority- (including the Government) to do or not to do something, in the nature of public duty.
3. Prohibition- A writ of prohibition is issued by a superior court to an inferior court or tribunal to prevent it from exceeding its jurisdiction and to compel it to keep within the limits of its jurisdiction.
4. Certiorari - A writ of certiorari has much in common with a writ of prohibition. The only difference between the two is, whereas a writ of prohibition is issued to prevent an inferior court or tribunal to go ahead with the trial of a case in which it has assumed excess of jurisdiction, a writ of certiorari is issued to quash the order passed by an inferior court or tribunal in excess of jurisdiction.
5. Quo Warranto - The words quo warranto means “what is your authority” ? A writ of quo warranto is issued against the holder of a public office to show to the court under what authority he holds the office.

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