“While the powers the High Court may exercise under its Writ Jurisdiction are not subject to strict legal principles, two clear principles emerge with respect to when a High Court’s Writ Jurisdiction may be engaged. First, the decision of the High Court to entertain or not entertain a particular action under its Writ Jurisdiction is […]

“A Writ of Quo Warranto cannot be issued on the basis of assumptions, inferences or suspicion regarding the factum of fulfillment of eligibility criteria. Being an extraordinary power, ordinarily such a Writ ought to be issued only on the basis of indisputable facts leading to a singular conclusion that the incumbent was in fact or […]

“There can be a conflict between two individuals qua their right under Article 21 of the Constitution and in such a situation, to weigh the balance, the test that is required to be applied is the test of larger public interest and further that would, in certain circumstances, advance public morality of the day. To […]

My Lord, Is a Tribunal, whose Order is challenged under Articles 226, 227 of The Constitution, a Necessary Party? The issue has been considered in Jogendrasinhji, (2015) 9 SCC 1. The Judgment holds thus, the Tribunals, who in law are entitled to defend the Orders passed by them, are Necessary Parties and if they are […]

“The Court must necessarily abide the parameters which govern a nuanced exercise of judicial power. Hence, where an effort is made to bring issues of governance before the Court, the basic touchstone on which the invocation of jurisdiction must rest is whether the issue can be addressed within the framework of law or the Constitution. […]

“A Writ of Mandamus is an extraordinary remedy and is intended to supply deficiencies in law and is thus discretionary in nature. The issuance of a Writ of Mandamus pre-supposes a clear right of the applicant and unjustifiable failure of a duty imposed on an authority otherwise obliged in law to imperatively discharge the same. […]

 My Lord, What is Mandamus? “Mandamus literally means a command. The essence of Mandamus in England was that it was a royal command issued by the King’s Bench (now Queen’s Bench) directing performance of a public legal duty. A Writ of Mandamus is issued in favour of a person who establishes a legal right in […]

“A Writ Court while deciding a Writ Petition is required to remain alive to the nature of the claim and the unexplained delay on the part of the Writ Petitioner. Stale claims are not to be adjudicated unless non-interference would cause grave injustice. In the case at hand, the employee was dismissed from service in […]

“A Writ Court should ordinarily not entertain a Writ Petition, if there is a breach of contract involving disputed questions of fact. When an issue arises whether in a particular State there are toilets for school children and there is an assertion by the State that there are good toilets, definitely the Court can appoint […]

“No question other than relating to Fundamental Rights will be determined in a proceeding under Article 32. The difference between Article 32 and 226 is that while an application under Article 32 lies only for the enforcement of Fundamental Rights, the High Court under Article 226 has a wider power to exercise its jurisdiction not only for the […]

My Lord, Is a Writ Application maintainable against an Order of West Bengal Land Reforms and Tenancy Tribunal, refusing to initiate Contempt Proceedings against an Authority arrayed as a Respondent before the Tribunal? Yes. “Such a pristine question of law does not require any reference to the facts… We are unable to agree with the […]