An erect, up to 45 cm, much branched, basally woody herb with glabrous or ± pubescent, 4-angled branches. Leaves with 1-4 (-6) mm long petiole; lamina linear or lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, 2.5-6 cm x (3-) 5-15 (-18) mm, sparsely hairy on both sides, entire, subacute. Inflorescence an axillary or terminal, 2.5-15 (-20) cm long, c. 5-10 mm across spike. Flowers mostly purple, c. 10 mm long, sessile; bracts narrowly ovate, 5-6 mm x c. 2 mm, with membranus ciliated margins; bracteoles linear-lanceolate, smaller than the calyx, hairy. Calyx 4-lobed nearly to the base, lobes lanceolate, 5-6 mm long subequal, acute, scarious and ciliated on margins. Corolla tube funnel-shaped, c. 4 mm long, pubescent outside; upper, patent, 3-lobed. Filaments glabrous, c. 4 mm long, hairy at base. Ovary sparsely hairy at apex; style filiform, hairy in the lower half. Capsule oblong, c. 5 mm long, ± 4-angled, hairy towards the apex, mucronate. Seeds ± concentric, papillate-rugose.

Distribution: India and Pakistan.

Lower Taxa

• Justicia vahlii var. scindica Malik & A. Ghafoor
• Justicia vahlii var. vahlii