[1] It was originally available only to the Crown under English law, and reflected the discretionary prerogative and extraordinary power of the monarch.
Article 199 of the Constitution confers wide powers of judicial review on Provincial High Courts in Pakistan.
They are the writs of prohibition, mandamus, certiorari, habeas corpus and quo warranto.
At the time of his installation as Chief Justice in 1958, he emphasised: "Mandamus and Certiorari are flowers of paradise and the whole length and breadth of Pakistan is not wide enough to contain their perfume".
The language of the statute was left deliberately vague in order to allow the courts flexibility in determining what writs are necessary "in aid of their jurisdiction".