prohibition

Prohibition is a preventive writ issued by the Supreme Court under Article 32 or a High Court under Article 226. It is directed to an inferior court, tribunal or quasi-judicial authority while the proceeding is still pending, forbidding it from continuing where it has no jurisdiction, exceeds its jurisdiction, violates natural justice, or acts under an unconstitutional law.

The difference from certiorari is timing: prohibition prevents a decision from being made, while certiorari quashes a decision already made. If a proceeding is partly over, both can be issued together. It does not lie against the legislature or a private person, and is not used to correct mere errors within jurisdiction.

Example

The High Court issued a writ of prohibition restraining the tribunal from hearing a dispute that the statute had placed outside its jurisdiction.

In Indian law

• Articles 32 and 226, Constitution of India

See also

certiorari · writ · mandamus · jurisdiction

Read more in the study notes

• Classification of administrative action (Administrative Law)
• Judicial control: public and private law remedies, writ procedure and ouster clauses (Administrative Law)
• Control of the RBI over non-banking companies, financial and non-financial (Banking Law)
• The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation Act, 1961 (Banking Law)
• Lending by banks: principles, priority sector, securities, interest and penalty (Banking Law)
• Criminal force and assault against women (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita)