Hyderabad: Former Isha Home School faculty member Yamini Ragani and her husband Satya N. Ragani levelled serious allegations of rape, molestion and misconduct at the Isha Foundation of Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. The foundation’s ashram in Tamil Nadu recently faced raids before it appealed to the Supreme Court.
Ragani described the Isha Foundation as “a breeding ground for child abuse.” She claimed that the foundation's schools, including Isha Vidya, Isha Sanskruti, and Isha Home School, lacked oversight, placing children in danger.
“Children are mentally abused, verbally abused, and more. They don’t even teach children properly. There are no qualified teachers,” she alleged. She further noted that there are no redressal or sexual harassment committee at the organisations either.
Ragani alleged that her son, a former student of Isha Home School, was a victim of abuse. The couple shared accounts of other children being mistreated, including an eight-year-old girl.
According to Yamini, the Sadhguru never came to console the children.
The couple questioned the foundation’s authority to operate independently and without regulation. “This can be highly exploitative,” Yamini said.
Since 2016, six individuals have reportedly gone missing from the Isha Foundation’s premises in Coimbatore, according to disclosures made by Tamil Nadu police to the Madras High Court. The police are also investigating the electrocution of 17-year-old S. Mokshagna, a student at the Isha Home School, during a yoga centre outing.
Adding to the concerns, a petition by Dr S. Kamaraj, a retired professor from Coimbatore, accused the foundation of brainwashing and forcibly confining his two daughters, aged 42 and 39. Despite inquiries by the Tamil Nadu police, the Supreme Court has temporarily stayed any police action against the foundation, transferring the case for further investigation.
Along with the Raganis, who are from Hyderabad, five more families have come forward to share their experiences.
In one case, a mother, who spoke anonymously, revealed that her daughter was repeatedly raped by a physical education teacher. “She has attempted suicide twice because of this,” the mother said. The situation worsened due to the school’s efforts to isolate students from their families. “They intercepted letters our children wrote weekly, allowing only one to reach us each month,” she added.
Some parents claim they were threatened into silence. “We were part of the inner circle at Isha. We’ve been threatened that we could lose our lives if we expose this,” they shared.
Parents have also raised concerns about the foundation’s spiritual practices. There are claims that young girls were made to participate in spiritual meditations where they had to be bare-chested. “What is this half-nude spiritual meditation? Why must girls be bare-chested? They say the spine should be exposed – according to which tradition?” Ragani asked.
The families plan to file a case under the Pocso Act and are calling for a public investigation. They’ve set up an email account to gather support from others with similar experiences.
