Supreme Court stays Madras High Court order against Isha Foundation, Sadhguru
Case transferred to Supreme Court
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the Madras High Court's order directing police action against Jaggi Vasudev's Isha Foundation. The stay was granted after the Foundation approached the apex court challenging the High Court's direction to the Tamil Nadu government to provide details of all criminal cases registered against it.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, which issued the stay order, also transferred the case from the High Court to the Supreme Court. The decision was made after the bench interacted with two women whose father had filed a Habeas Corpus petition claiming they were being detained at the Isha Yoga Centre in Coimbatore.
The petition, filed by S Kamaraj, a retired professor, alleged that his daughters, aged 42 and 39, were “brainwashed” into residing at the ashram and were not allowed to maintain any contact with their families. During the hearing, the two women appeared before the Supreme Court and stated that they were staying at the ashram of their own free will.
The court, after noting the women’s submissions, passed the following directions:
1. The case was transferred to the Supreme Court from the Madras High Court.
2. The original petitioner was allowed to appear either virtually or through his counsel.
3. The status report of the police shall be submitted to the Supreme Court.
4. The police were directed not to take any further action in pursuance of the High Court's directions.
The stay order was passed after Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Isha Foundation, contended that such directions could not have been passed in a Habeas Corpus petition, especially when the two women had already appeared before the High Court. He argued that the matter was related to religious freedom and that the High Court could not initiate such inquiries based on oral assertions.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, supporting the Foundation’s plea, stated that the High Court should have exercised caution in the matter and highlighted the urgent need for the Supreme Court's intervention.
The Supreme Court’s order noted that the two women had interacted with the bench and affirmed their voluntary stay at the ashram. The court also noted that the police party, which had conducted a search at the ashram following the High Court's order, had left the premises.
In light of these observations, the Supreme Court stayed further police action against the Isha Foundation and transferred the case for its own adjudication.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
