Six people have gone missing from Isha Foundation founded by Jagadish ‘Jaggi’ Vasudev, popularly known as Sadhguru, in Coimbatore since 2016, the Tamil Nadu Police informed the Madras High Court, reports Bar and Bench.
The submissions were made by the police orally before a Bench of Justices MS Ramesh and Sunder Mohan.
Police said that the probe in the missing cases was already ongoing.
The Bench on Thursday directed police to submit a status report on the probe by April 18. The matter will be heard on the date.
The court was hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by one Thirumalai, to produce his brother Ganesan.
Thirumalai had approached the Court after his brother 46-year-old Ganeshan reportedly went missing from the Isha Foundation in March last year.
The Court was told that he was unable to contact his brother for several days, following which he contacted ISHA foundation. After contacting them, the Foundation told him that Ganeshan, who worked at the ashram, had not reported to duty for two days.
Thirumalai had them lodged a complaint and moved the court.
‘Totally false’: ISHA Foundation
The Isha foundation, meanwhile, refuted the allegations, calling it “totally false”.
“The news claiming that six people have disappeared from Isha Yoga Center since 2016 is totally false and baseless,” the foundation told Financial Express Online.
What is ISHA Foundation?
The Isha Foundation is a nonprofit, spiritual organisation was founded in 1992 near Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore, which is run “almost entirely” by volunteers.
Isha Foundation’s headquarters are situated in an ashram nestled amidst the foothills of the Velliangiri Mountains, adjacent to the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, approximately forty kilometres from the city of Coimbatore.
However, the foundation’s construction activities at the Isha Yoga Centre have faced allegations of violating rules and regulations on multiple occasions. This has led to opposition from environmental activists and the local indigenous community, who have contested against the expansion of the ashram.