Writ Petition

Subject: Polity

Context: The Delhi high court refused the plea by the Indian Airlines Officers Association seeking pay and allowance arrears.

More about the News:

The petitioner, in their plea, sought arrears of pay and allowances for the period of January 1, 1997 to July 31, 2006.
Counsel for Air India said the airline has been privatised and the entire shareholding of the Government of India has been transferred to a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd and, therefore, the petition cannot lie under Article 226 of the Constitution as Air India was no longer a public body.
Delhi High Court has refused to entertain a plea against Air India by the Indian Airlines Officers Association seeking pay and allowance arrears, saying the airline has ceased to be a government-controlled company and is no longer amenable to its writ jurisdiction.
The court, while disposing of the petition, nonetheless clarified that the petitioner is free to take recourse to remedies available to them in law before an appropriate forum and Air India shall be responsible for clearing the dues if the claim succeeds.

About Writ Petition:

A writ petition is filed when someone’s fundamental rights have been violated or they have been the victim of injustice.
A writ is a written order issued in the name of the court.
In the Indian legal system, you can file or draft a writ petition in the High Court under Article 226 and in the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Indian Constitution.

Article 32

Article 32 is one of the fundamental rights listed in the Constitution that each citizen is entitled.
Article 32 deals with the ‘Right to Constitutional Remedies’, or affirms the right to move the Supreme Court by appropriate proceedings for the enforcement of the rights conferred in Part III of the Constitution.
Only if fundamental rights is violated can a person can approach the Supreme Court directly under Article 32.
Both the High Courts and the Supreme Court can be approached for violation or enactment of fundamental rights through five kinds of writs:
- Habeas corpus – related to personal liberty in cases of illegal detentions and wrongful arrests
- Mandamus — directing public officials, governments, courts to perform a statutory duty;
- Quo warranto — to show by what warrant is a person holding public office;
- Prohibition — directing judicial or quasi-judicial authorities to stop proceedings which it has no jurisdiction for; and
- Certiorari — re-examination of an order given by judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative authorities.
When it comes to violation of fundamental rights, an individual can approach the High Court under Article 226 or the Supreme Court directly under Article 32. Article 226, however, is not a fundamental right like Article 32.

Article 226

Article 226 of the Constitution empowers a high court to issue writs including habeas corpus, mandamus, certiorari, prohibition and quo warranto for the enforcement of the fundamental rights of the citizens and for any other purpose.
The phrase ‘for any other purpose’ refers to the enforcement of an ordinary legal right. This implies that the writ jurisdiction of the high court is wider than that of the SC.
This is because the SC can issue writs only for the enforcement of fundamental rights and not for any other purpose, that is, it does not extend to a case where the breach of an ordinary legal right is alleged.
The high court can issue writs to any person, authority and government not only within its territorial jurisdiction but also outside its territorial jurisdiction if the cause of action arises within its territorial jurisdiction.