People's Union for Civil Liberties & Anr. v. Union of India

10 SCC 1 (2013)

From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

People’s Union for Civil Liberties & Anr. v. Union of India

India Supreme Court
10 SCC 1 (2013)

Facts

The People’s Union for Civil Liberty (PUCL) (plaintiff) filed a writ petition under Article 23 of the Indian constitution, challenging Rules 41(2) and (3) and Rule 49-0 of the Conduct of Election Rules (the rules). Under these rules, if an Indian voter exercised his or her right not to vote in an election, a government official would note the voter’s decision not to vote in an official form. The PUCL argued the rules violated the secrecy of voting and undermined free and fair elections, which were guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) and Article 21 of the Indian constitution. The PUCL, therefore, sought the writ to protect the fundamental right, arguing that the notation in the form about the voter’s decision not to vote violated the voter’s right to freedom of expression. The Indian government (defendant) countered that the right to vote was a statutory right rather than a constitutional or fundamental right, and that given that the right to vote was not fundamental right, the PUCL could not file for a writ under Article 23. The Indian government further argued that under the statutory right to vote, the right to secrecy applied only to voters who exercised the right to choose a candidate.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 815,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 815,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 815,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership