People's Union for Civil Liberties

People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) is a human rights body formed in India in 1976 by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, as the People's Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights (PUCLDR).

Jayaprakash Narayan was a Gandhian leader in India after independence. When Indira Gandhi was found guilty of violating electoral laws by the Allahabad High Court, Narayan called for Indira to resign, and advocated a program of social transformation. He asked the military and police to disregard unconstitutional and immoral orders. However, Janata Party opposition leaders and dissenting members of her party, Congress (I) were arrested, beginning The Emergency. Narayan was detained at Chandigarh, and when released in 1976, formed the PUCL to oppose the suppression of civil and political rights during the emergency. The organization was thrown into disarray by his death and the election of the Janata party to power, which promised to enact the PUCL platform.

Narayan originally intended PUCL to be an organisation free from political ideologies, bringing those concerned about defending civil liberties and human rights from different backgrounds onto a common platform. According to the PUCL, the PUCLDR was a loosely organised group of people who were working with Narayan, a prominent figure in the Indian Opposition in the 1970s.

After the return of Indira Gandhi to power in the 1980 elections in India, the organisation regained momentum and was renamed as the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL). Its founding conference was held in November 1980.

The founding conference of the PUCL in November 1980, drafted and adopted the organization's constitution, making it a membership based organization. The PUCL's constitution does not allow members of a political party to hold any office and hold membership in the PUCL; the number of members, belonging to political parties, in the national or state executive committees shall not be more than 50% of the members of the National Council and the National Executive Committee respectively (and also the corresponding bodies at the state and local level). The PUCL does not allow more than 10% of its members to be from the same political party.

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