In compliance with a madras high court order, a group of police investigators investigated at spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev's Isha yoga Centre in Coimbatore. The investigation was started in response to a Habeas Corpus petition submitted by retired professor S Kamaraj, who stated that the center was holding his two daughters against their will.
According to Kamaraj, the center is brainwashing people, turning them into monks, and severing their connections with their families.
The two ladies did, however, inform the court that they were living at the yoga center freely throughout the hearing. The Justices SM Subramaniam and v Sivagnanam bench questioned Jaggi Vasudev's teachings at the center, pointing out that his own daughter is married and stable, thus they wondered why he pushed young women to become monks.
The petitioner's counsel also pointed out that several criminal cases are pending against the foundation, including a recent case where a doctor associated with Isha yoga Centre was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The government has been given until october 4th by the court to provide a thorough status report on these cases.
"We conducted the inquiry today at Isha yoga Centre based on the directions from the high court," coimbatore district SP K karthikeyan said in an interview with india Today. The inquiry included representatives from the child welfare committee, social welfare department, and other organizations. We are investigating every angle. The investigation will carry on tomorrow as well. There will be a thorough status report submitted to the court.
The Isha Foundation, however, dismissed the accusations as unfounded in a statement.
Sadhguru established the Isha Foundation to teach people yoga and spirituality. We think that mature people are wise enough to select their own path," the statement said.
The organization said that people make their own decisions about marriage and monastic life and denied forcing anybody to follow this path.
The statement went on to discuss the petitioner's prior legal disputes, charging him and others with attempting to enter their property falsely and filing a frivolous case. The foundation reaffirmed that they are not the subject of any more criminal charges and underlined that the court had previously halted the production of a final police report on the situation.
"Whoever indulges in spreading false information against the foundation will be strictly dealt with as per the law of the land,” the statement added.
According to Kamaraj, the center is brainwashing people, turning them into monks, and severing their connections with their families.
The two ladies did, however, inform the court that they were living at the yoga center freely throughout the hearing. The Justices SM Subramaniam and v Sivagnanam bench questioned Jaggi Vasudev's teachings at the center, pointing out that his own daughter is married and stable, thus they wondered why he pushed young women to become monks.
The petitioner's counsel also pointed out that several criminal cases are pending against the foundation, including a recent case where a doctor associated with Isha yoga Centre was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The government has been given until october 4th by the court to provide a thorough status report on these cases.
"We conducted the inquiry today at Isha yoga Centre based on the directions from the high court," coimbatore district SP K karthikeyan said in an interview with india Today. The inquiry included representatives from the child welfare committee, social welfare department, and other organizations. We are investigating every angle. The investigation will carry on tomorrow as well. There will be a thorough status report submitted to the court.
The Isha Foundation, however, dismissed the accusations as unfounded in a statement.
Sadhguru established the Isha Foundation to teach people yoga and spirituality. We think that mature people are wise enough to select their own path," the statement said.
The organization said that people make their own decisions about marriage and monastic life and denied forcing anybody to follow this path.
The statement went on to discuss the petitioner's prior legal disputes, charging him and others with attempting to enter their property falsely and filing a frivolous case. The foundation reaffirmed that they are not the subject of any more criminal charges and underlined that the court had previously halted the production of a final police report on the situation.
"Whoever indulges in spreading false information against the foundation will be strictly dealt with as per the law of the land,” the statement added.
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