The Madras High Court, on Monday, September 30, directed the Tamil Nadu government and the state police to collect details of criminal cases registered against Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation. The court was hearing a habeas corpus filed by a 69-year-old man alleging that his two daughters were held captive inside the Isha Foundation.
Though the two women appeared before the court and stated that they were at Isha Foundation under their own volition, the court decided to probe further saying that it had certain doubts about the case. “We want to know why a person who had given his daughter in marriage and made her settle well in life is encouraging the daughters of others to tonsure their heads and live the life of a hermitess,” the court said. The court was talking about Jaggi Vasudev and his daughter Radhe, a professional dancer.
A bench of justices SM Subramaniam and V Sivagnanam was hearing the habeas corpus petition filed by S Kamaraj, retired professor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in Coimbatore. He alleged that his daughters – Geetha Kamaraj @ Maa Mathi (42) and Latha Kamaraj @ Maa Maayu (39) were held as captives by Isha Foundation. He also added that ‘certain persons’ were being brainwashed and converted as monks and not allowed to meet their family members.
Further, Kamaraj had also pointed out that a doctor working at Isha Foundation was arrested in a POCSO case. On September 6, S Saravanamoorthy, who was part of a mobile medical units team operated by the Isha Foundation, was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting 12 girl students during a medical camp at a government school in Thondamuthur.
The counsel for Kamaraj also submitted that there were other criminal cases against the foundation.
According to a The Hindu report, both the women appeared before the court and said that they were not detained against their will. However, the court decided to probe further saying, “In view of the serious nature of the allegations raised against the institution and the way and the manner in which the detenues have spoken before us, we could form an opinion that some more deliberations are required to understand the truth behind the allegations.”
According to The Hindu report, advocate K Rajendra Kumar wanted to know what the doubts of the court were, the judges said that they wanted to know why Jaggu Vasudev, a person who had given his daughter in marriage and made her settle well in life, is encouraging the daughters of others to tonsure their heads and live the life of a hermitess. As the counsel said that the adults were free to choose their own path, the court remarked, “You will not understand because you are appearing for a particular party. But this court is neither for or against anybody. We only want to do justice to the litigants before us.”
Further, when the women intervened to make their submissions, the bench had said, “You claim to be on the path of spirituality. Don’t you think that neglecting your parents is a sin? ‘Love all and hate none’ is the principle of devotion but we could see so much hatred in you for your parents. You are not even addressing them respectfully.”
The court then directed Kamaraj to produce the details of criminal cases registered against the institution and also the Additional Public Prosecutor E Raj Thilak to collect all the details of cases registered against Isha Foundation. The case has been posted to October 4 for hearing.