Habeas Corpus

noun

/ˈheɪbiəs ˈkɔːpəs/

A legal writ requiring that a detained person be brought before a court to determine whether their imprisonment is lawful.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

In a constitutional democracy the writ of habeas corpus operates as the citizen's first line of defence against executive excess, compelling the State to justify before an impartial court every deprivation of personal liberty.

Synonyms

writ of libertyprotection against unlawful detentionjudicial safeguard of libertywrit of releasedue-process guarantee

Antonyms

arbitrary detentionunlawful imprisonmentpreventive detentioninternment

🌱 Word Family

No standard derived forms

🔡 Root

Medieval Latin habeas corpus = you shall have the body; habēre = to have; corpus = body

📜 Etymology

From Medieval Latin habeas corpus ad subjiciendum, meaning "you shall have the body to be subjected to examination"; habeas from Latin habēre ("to have") and corpus ("body").

🧠 Memory Hook

"Habeas" sounds like "have us" + "corpus" = "body": the court orders the jailer to "have us the body" — produce the prisoner in person to prove the detention is lawful.

📝 Seen in UPSC Question Papers

Prelims 2025 — Fundamental Rights

Real UPSC previous-year questions whose text uses “Habeas Corpus” — proof this word earns its place on your list.

🏛️ History & Culture 📖 Seen in: The Emergency & Democratic Resilience ...

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