About NCGC
The National Council for General Caste is a citizens' organisation working on a narrow and specific problem: what happens to a person after a criminal complaint is registered against them without a factual basis, and how long it takes the courts to find that out.
What we are
NCGC works for members of the general, or unreserved, category. Our subject is procedure rather than politics. Who investigates a complaint, at what rank, on what evidence, within what time limit, and what remedy exists when a court finds that a complaint was knowingly false.
We are not a law firm. We do not appear in court in our own name. What we do is put a person who has been named in a case in touch with an advocate who will act for them, help them understand the deadlines they are working against, and record what the courts eventually decide.
Our position on caste atrocities
Our work concerns a separate and narrower question. A complaint made without a factual basis injures the person accused, and it also discredits the people the law exists to protect. Both of those are reasons to care about how carefully a complaint is examined before a person is arrested.
What we do
- Legal aid desk. A volunteer advocate in your district, at no fee. Where you cannot afford counsel at all, we help you apply to the District Legal Services Authority, which provides an advocate at state cost.
- Procedural guidance. Plain-language notes on the FIR, notice of appearance, remand, charge sheet timelines, default bail, discharge and quashing. See Know your rights.
- Case documentation. We record matters that end in acquittal, discharge or quashing, together with the reasons the court gave. Anonymised, this is the evidence base for everything we submit.
- Policy advocacy. Written representations to ministries, state governments, law commissions and parliamentary committees. See Our positions.
- Awareness and training. District workshops on rights at the time of arrest, and on settling disputes over land, wages and property before they turn into criminal complaints.
What we do not do
- We do not charge. Panel advocates take these matters without fee. If anyone asks you for money in NCGC's name, write to office@ncgc.in at once.
- We do not promise outcomes. Only a court can quash an FIR or grant bail. Anyone who guarantees you a result is not telling you the truth.
- We do not give legal advice on this website. The guides here are general. They are not a substitute for an advocate who has read your FIR.
- We do not turn people away by community. A person facing a false case needs a lawyer regardless of which schedule they appear in. Poverty, not caste, is what leaves people undefended.
How we are funded
[EDIT: State your funding sources plainly — membership subscriptions, individual donations, and so on. If you receive donations, say whether they carry tax relief under section 80G and give the registration number. If you do not accept foreign contributions, say so; FCRA compliance is a common question. Vagueness here costs you credibility with journalists and with the people you want to help.]
Governance
[EDIT: Name the registering statute and authority — for example a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, or a trust, or a section 8 company — with the registration number and date. Then link to the office bearers page.]
Our office bearers and the governing council are listed on the Council and office bearers page.
Get in touch
If you have been named in a case, start at Get legal help. If arrest has taken place or is imminent, call the helpline on 1800 000 0000 rather than writing — a form cannot meet a twenty-four hour deadline.
For everything else: office@ncgc.in. Press enquiries: press@ncgc.in.