After the Tamil Nadu police conducted searches at Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation in Coimbatore on October 1, the Supreme Court has restrained police action against the Foundation. The apex court’s order came on October 3, following the Madras High Court’s directions in a habeas corpus filed by a 69-year-old man alleging that his two daughters were held captive inside the Isha Foundation. The Supreme Court bench,  comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra has now transferred the plea to itself and posted the case to October 18.

The SC was hearing an urgent plea filed by the Isha Foundation, represented by senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who argued that this is a serious case pertaining to the issue of ‘religious freedom’. “This is about the Isha Foundation, there is Sadhguru who is very revered and has lakhs of followers. High Court cannot start such enquiries on oral assertions,” he contended. He also argued that such directions should not have been passed in a habeas corpus writ and submitted that close to 150 police personnel searched the premises of the foundation where 5000 people lived.

The CJI orally remarked, “You cannot let an army or police into an establishment like this.” The bench also interacted with the two women, to produce whom the writ was filed, who informed the court that they were staying at Isha Foundation voluntarily. 

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared on behalf of the Union government, also supported the Foundation’s petition saying that the High Court should have been cautious in passing the order. During the search on October 1, nearly 150 police personnel including three DSPs were reportedly present at the Foundation.

Though the two women had also appeared before the Madras High Court, the court said that it had certain doubts about the case and decided to probe the matter further. “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 HC had said. The court was referring to Jaggi Vasudev and his daughter Radhe, a professional dancer.

The said habeas corpus petition pertains to a retired professor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, S Kamaraj, who alleged that his daughters – Geetha Kamaraj, also called Maa Mathi (42) and Latha Kamaraj, also called Maa Maayu (39) were held captive by the Isha Foundation. Further, Kamaraj also pointed out that a doctor working at the Foundation was arrested in a POCSO case.

On September 6, S Saravanamoorthy, who was part of a mobile medical units team operated by the Foundation, was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting 12 girl students during a medical camp at a government school in Thondamuthur.

The HC 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.