Habeas Corpus and Mandamus
Short Notes:
Habeas Corpus:
A writ of habeas corpus is used to compel a person who has detained another to produce such another before the court, so
that the court can know the grounds on which the person has been confined and
to release the person if there is no legal justification for that person’s
confinement. A writ habeas corpus would become infructuous if the detenu is
produced before the magistrate.
Illustration: The police arrested A from his home, and no
information about A’s where about or place of confinement, condition, was available
for days on end. A’s brother B, files a petition before the Supreme Court can
issue writ of habeas corpus against the police authorities, directing them to
produce A before the court.
Mandamus:
The word “mandamus” translates
literally into ‘command’. This writ is issued to provide for remedies for the
enforcement of rights where a fundamental right is infringed by a statute,
statutory order, or a “non-statutory’ executive order. (Prabodh Vs State of
Uttar Pradesh, AIR 1985 SC 167).
Illustration: A, a
district collector, issues an order, directing the jail authorities not to
permit inmates at a prison to vote during the upcoming general elections. B, an
inmate, causes a petition under A.32 to be filled before the Supreme Court. The
Supreme Court can issue a writ of mandamus, quashing the District Collector’s
order, and directing the jail authorities to ensure that inmates’ right to vote
is not violated.
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