Supreme Court verdict on the case
On Thursday the Supreme Court paused the alleged confinement of two women at Isha Foundation’s ashram in Coimbatore’s Thondamuthur and passed on the case from the Madras high court to itself
On September 30 the police were instructed by the high court to investigate the allegations. A day later a contingent of 150 police personnel escorted to the premises, which ensured a spark of legality and basis of the high courts’ order.
After a habeas corpus petition was filed by a retired Coimbatore professor alleging his daughters were at the ashram against their will, the high court instructed the inquiry. Police were asked to also provide details of all criminal cases registered against spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation.
A bench consisting of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra halted the high court order after the two women aged 38 and 42 came on the internet and said that they were at the ashram voluntarily. The two completely rejected their father’s claims.
The bench stated that it has been viewed that the women had made it very clear that there was no action of coercion or compulsion in their involvement in their inclusion at the ashram, and they were free to leave at any time. It has been noted that the police left the ashram on Wednesday night.
The bench noticed the high court that it did not have any tangible reason for ordering an inquiry against the Isha Foundation. It raised questions on the legal basis for such an order.
Picture credit: Hindustan Times
The matter was held by the Supreme Court after the Isha Foundation challenged the high court’s orders, by giving their contentions they said that there was no reasonable floor to suggest the women were being held against their will.
The Foundation’s statement on the case
Mukul Rohatagi Senior advocate, who represents the Foundation, stated that the police raid did not contain any warranty and was based solely on unsubstantiated allegations. Tushar Mehta, Solicitor general, appeared for the Union government, backed up the foundation’s statements, and said that the orders of the high court needed to be paused for lacking any reason for instructing the police to raid down the ashram.
The bench highlighted that the evidence of the women didn’t left for any space for doubt regarding their voluntary stay. It directed the postponing of the case from the high court to itself and the Tamil Nadu police was asked to submit a status report. The Supreme Court obstructed the police from taking any further action in this matter. It will hold up the matter again on October 18.
Sidharth Luthra, who is the Senior counsel appearing for the state government, stated that the police pursued the high court order and that the inquiries at the ashram were carried on with all the suitable and proper measures as well as resources, which also included children protection officers.
This week in a statement, the Isha Foundation stated that the allegations and the raid by the police does not make any sense and it’s completely baseless. The Foundation argued that two women were old standing members of the ashram community and had chosen to stay there out of spiritual and personal preference.
Picture credit: Top- Rated.Online
When the Foundation appealed to the Supreme Court, they stressed that the high court’s directives had not only stained their reputation but also obstructed the peaceful atmosphere and functioning of the ashram. The Foundation claimed that the high court directives were very unjustified and led to the violation of the fundamental rights, adding up to the right to privacy and to function the free will of those residing at the ashram.
Their plea focused that the rights and autonomy of individuals, including their freedom to choose where they live and practice their beliefs, must be respected. It emphasized that unless there exists some substantiated evidence of illegal confinement or coercion, courts and the law enforcement agencies should prevent exercising the act of intervening in personal lives.
