Home › PYQs › Polity › All questions › 2022 · Writs · Mandamus & Quo…
UPSC Prelims 2022 · Polity · Fundamental Rights & Writs
With reference to the writs issued by the Courts in India, consider the following statements:
- Mandamus will not lie against a private organization unless it is entrusted with a public duty.
- Mandamus will not lie against a Company even though it may be a Government Company.
- Any public minded person can be a petitioner to move the Court to obtain the writ of Quo Warranto.
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- (b) 2 and 3 only
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only
Mandamus = public duty (so private bodies only when they have one); quo warranto = open to any person.
Statement by statement
1. ✓ CORRECT Mandamus commands a public duty. A private body is reachable only when it performs a public function or duty.
2. ✗ WRONG A Government company is often “State” under Art. 12 and discharges public duties — mandamus can lie against it.
3. ✓ CORRECT Quo warranto tests whether someone holds a public office lawfully. Unlike other writs, any interested person can seek it — not only the aggrieved person.
The idea
Mandamus does not lie against the President or Governors (personally), the CJ of a High Court acting judicially, a private individual or body (unless it has a public duty), or to enforce a contract or a discretionary duty.
Why the others are wrong
(a) Keeps statement 2, a blanket immunity for Government companies that does not exist.
(b) Drops statement 1, which is the core test for mandamus: a public duty.
(d) Statement 2 is too absolute: Government companies are not beyond mandamus.
The trap
Statement 2 sounds plausible because companies are “private” in form. The test is the duty, not the corporate form.
🔒 Quo warranto = only writ any person may seek. Mandamus = public duty only; not against President/Governor, not for contracts.
Solve this chapter interactively →All Polity questions