Justice Subramonium Prasad issued notices to the defendants and scheduled the case for argument commencement in April 2025. Notably, Isha Foundation opted not to request an interim injunction. The case will progress through the registrar courts with pleadings, examination-in-chief, and cross-examinations.
NEW DELHI: Spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation has filed a defamation suit in the Delhi High Court on Monday (2nd Dec) against Tamil media outlet Nakkheeran. The foundation seeks the removal of allegedly defamatory videos and demands Rs 3 crore in damages from Nakkheeran and its editor, Gopal.
Google LLC is also named in the case due to the content appearing in Google search results and on YouTube.
Justice Subramonium Prasad issued notices to the defendants and scheduled the case for argument commencement in April 2025. Notably, Isha Foundation opted not to request an interim injunction. The case will progress through the registrar courts with pleadings, examination-in-chief, and cross-examinations.
Represented by Senior Advocate Rajshekhar Rao and a team from Athena Legal, Isha Foundation alleges that Nakkheeran published critical reports accusing the foundation of misconduct, including exploitation, brainwashing, and illegal activities. These claims suggest individuals were coerced or held against their will at the foundation.
The foundation argues that Nakkheeran continued publishing these allegations despite a Supreme Court ruling dismissing a related habeas corpus petition.
The petition, filed by a father, claimed his two adult daughters were “brainwashed” into staying at the Isha Yoga Centre. On October 18, a Supreme Court bench led by then-CJI DY Chandrachud, with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, confirmed that both women were residing there voluntarily. The Court closed the case but noted that police investigations, if any, could continue independently.
Hearing the matter, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud noted that a doctor at the Foundation’s Ashram was recently charged with child abuse under the stringent POCSO Act and said the probe must continue. Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Isha Foundation, said the alleged incidents did not happen on its campus.
The Chief Justice then asked if the two women were online so that the bench, also comprising Justice JB Pardiwala, could speak to them. Mr Rohatgi said they were.
The Chief Justice then 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.”
One of the women appeared before the court virtually and reiterated that they were at the ashram willingly. She alleged that their father had been harassing them for the past eight years.
Noting that this was a habeus corpus petition, the Chief Justice said,
“We would like to hear both monks in the chamber and come back in five minutes.”
The Chief Justice later said the women had told them that they joined the Ashram when they were 24 and 27, respectively, and were living there willingly. The court also noted that the mother of the two women had filed a similar petition eight years back.
The Madras High Court, in its deliberations, expressed doubts about Jaggi Vasudev’s actions, particularly concerning the life choices promoted by the Foundation. The court questioned,
“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. That is the doubt.”
Given the gravity of these concerns and the number of complaints against the Isha Foundation, the High Court felt further investigation was warranted. However, this prompted the Foundation to appeal to the Supreme Court, resulting in the current stay order.
With the Supreme Court’s intervention, the Madras High Court’s directions to the police have been temporarily stayed, and further deliberations on the case are expected as the apex court takes up the matter.
The matter escalated after the High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government to disclose all criminal cases registered against the Isha Foundation, following the father’s allegations.
