Article 226 is a fundamental provision in the Constitution of India, granting extraordinary power to every High Court to issue directions, orders, or writs throughout the territories of its jurisdiction. This power originated from the Indian High Courts Act of 1861, which established the Chartered High Courts in Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras, inheriting the Prerogative Writ power from their predecessors. The provision was adopted in the Constitution, which commenced on January 26, 1950, to decentralize judicial remedies and make justice more accessible at the regional level.
Article 226(1) works by empowering the High Courts to issue five types of writs: Habeas Corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Quo Warranto, and Certiorari. The key mechanism is its dual purpose: the writs can be issued for the enforcement of Fundamental Rights conferred by Part III of the Constitution, or "for any other purpose," which includes the violation of any legal or statutory rights. This makes the High Court's writ jurisdiction broader than the Supreme Court's power under Article 32, which is limited to the enforcement of Fundamental Rights.
The provision connects directly to the concept of judicial review and is the backbone of Public Interest Litigation (PIL). A significant change was introduced by the Constitution (Fifteenth Amendment) Act, 1963, which inserted a clause that is now Article 226(2). This amendment expanded the High Court's territorial jurisdiction, allowing it to issue writs even if the government or authority is not within its territory, provided the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises within its jurisdiction. The Supreme Court, in L. Chandra Kumar v. Union of India (1997), affirmed that the power of judicial review under Article 226 is an essential part of the Constitution's basic structure.