SC closes proceedings against Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev's Isha Foundation
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday closed the proceedings in a habeas corpus petition filed by a man who had alleged that his two daughters were held captive inside the premises of spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev's Isha Foundation at Coimbatore.
A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud noted that both the women were major and have stated that they were residing at the ashram voluntarily and without any coercion.
A habeas corpus petition is filed seeking direction to produce before the court a person who is missing or has been illegally detained.
The bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, also noted that in pursuance of its October 3 order, the police has submitted a status report before it. The bench observed it would be unnecessary for the apex court to expand upon the ambit of these proceedings which arises from a habeas corpus petition which was initially filed before the Madras High Court.
On October 3, the top court had effectively halted the police probe into the alleged illegal confinement of two women at the Foundation's ashram at Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
Transferring to itself the habeas corpus petition which was filed before the high court, the top court had directed the Tamil Nadu Police to not take any further action in pursuance of the high court's direction asking it to inquire into the alleged illegal confinement of the women.
The apex court had passed the order after the Isha Foundation approached it challenging the high court's order directing the Coimbatore Police to collect all case details registered against the Foundation and produce them before the court for further consideration.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
