• By Aditya Jha
  • Thu, 03 Oct 2024 12:25 PM (IST)
  • Source:JND

The Supreme Court on Thursday paused the Madras High Court order directing Tamil Nadu police to investigate the cases filed against spiritual leader Sadhguru's Isha Foundation. The top court has transferred the case to itself and ordered the state police to file a status report. The matter will be next heard on October 18.

The bench, led by CJI DY Chandrachud, was hearing a petition of the Isha Foundation challenging an order from the Madras High Court, following which hundreds of police officials entered inside Isha Foundation premises on Tuesday. Earlier, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the foundation, sought a stay on the order from the Madras High Court. “These are issues of religious freedom. This is a very urgent and serious case. This is about the Isha Foundation; there is Sadhguru, who is very revered and has lakhs of followers. High Court cannot start such inquiries on oral assertions,” Rohatgi said.

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CJI Chandrachud pointed out that an army of police cannot enter into any institution like this. The CJI noted, "The first thing is that you cannot let an army of police in the establishment like this... what we will do is ask a judicial officer to visit the premises and talk to these two inmates."

Earlier, the high court sought a report on all the criminal charges against the Isha Foundation from the Tamil Nadu government. The order came following a petition from the retired professor S Kamaraj, who alleged that two of her daughters, Geeta and Lata, were "brainwashed" to reside at the Isha Yoga Centre" in Coimbatore. 

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However, the Isha foundation denied all the accusations by saying that both of the women—aged 42 and 39—were residing by their will. Both confirmed the statement from the foundation when they were produced before the High Court. 

While hearing the case, the bench even interacted with one of the women, who is allegedly brainwashed to live in the yoga center. She confirmed that they were residing in the ashram by their will, and no one forced them to do so. “We are here at Isha Yoga Centre by our own will. And we also told the honorable judge of the high court that this harassment from our father’s side has been continuing for the past 8 years,” she said.