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Difficulty: MediumIndian Judiciary: Supreme Court, High Courts, Judicial Review, and PIL

Which of the following constitutional provisions and principles concerning the Supreme Court and High Courts of India are correct?

  1. The power of judicial review over legislative actions vested in the High Courts under Article 226 and the Supreme Court under Article 32 forms an integral part of the basic structure of the Constitution.Answer
  2. B
    Under Article 143, an advisory opinion delivered by the Supreme Court on a presidential reference constitutes binding precedent under Article 141 on all courts within India.
  3. A High Court can issue constitutional writs under Article 226 for the enforcement of Fundamental Rights as well as for any other ordinary legal right.Answer
  4. D
    The Governor of a State possesses the constitutional authority under Article 213 to issue writs of Habeas Corpus during a state emergency.

Answer

The correct statements are: (1) The power of judicial review vested in High Courts under Article 226 and the Supreme Court under Article 32 forms part of the basic structure of the Constitution; and (2) High Courts can issue writs under Article 226 for fundamental rights as well as for any other legal purpose.
The principle that judicial review under Articles 32 and 226 forms part of the basic structure was established in L. Chandra Kumar v. Union of India (1997). Furthermore, Article 226 explicitly allows High Courts to issue writs for fundamental rights as well as 'for any other purpose', making both statements accurate.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Evaluate the basic structure status of Judicial Review
Confirm that the Supreme Court's judgment in L. Chandra Kumar (1997) held judicial review under Articles 32 and 226/227 to be an unalterable basic structure component.
Judicial review ensures constitutional checks and balances across legislative and executive actions.
2
Analyze the legal nature of Advisory Jurisdiction under Article 143
Determine that Article 143 advisory opinions are non-binding recommendations provided to the President.
Precedential binding effect under Article 141 applies to judicial decisions resolving actual litigation, not advisory consultative opinions.
3
Examine the scope of High Court Writ Jurisdiction under Article 226
Verify that Article 226 contains the phrase 'for any other purpose', granting High Courts wider remedial jurisdiction than Article 32.
Article 32 is strictly limited to Fundamental Rights, whereas Article 226 encompasses ordinary legal and statutory rights.
4
Examine the power of Executive Officers regarding judicial writs
Identify that Governors exercise executive and legislative ordinance powers (Article 213), but have no jurisdiction to issue judicial writs.
Writ powers are exclusively vested in the higher judicial organs of the state.

Key Concept

Constitutional Jurisdiction and Basic Structure Doctrine of Higher Judiciary
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Topics

Indian Judiciary: Supreme Court, High Courts, Judicial Review, and PIL

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