After the witch hunt by DMK luminaries even before they won the election, Isha Yoga Center stands vindicated as the Forest Minister has admitted that it hasn’t encroached any property. However Dravidianists do not seem to be satisfied with it and are pursuing their hunt by alleging that it’s not a case of encroachment but constructing buildings without permission.
In April Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev had launched a campaign to free temples from government control. As the campaign coincided with assembly elections, DMK luminaries took it to mean that the campaign was targeted at them. The current Finance Minister of the state and the IT wing secretary of DMK, PTR Palanivel Thiyagarajan had taken it upon himself to personally target Sadhguru and called him names.
Dravidianist social media handles followed suit and called for taking over Isha Yoga center accusing Sadhguru of encroaching the elephant corridor in Coimbatore to build the center. He also initiated a campaign against Jaggi calling him a ‘jackal’. Spokesperson of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), an ally of DMK, said in an interview said that his demand is for Jaggi’s organisation to be taken over by the government and that when DMK comes to power and he enters the assembly as an MLA, he will pressurize the government to take over Jaggi’s organisation.
But now the Public Officer as the representative of the DMK government has replied to an RTI application that there have been “no encroachments in the forest land by the Isha Foundation and Isha yoga center”. The RTI reply also revealed that there is no notified elephant corridor in the Coimbatore Forest Division under which Isha Yoga center falls. To another question on whether the center has encroached forest lands, the officer replied “Kindly inform the details of constructions if any on the forest lands done by Isha foundation and Isha yoga center, Vellingiri Foot Hills, Coimbatore.”
Isha and Sadhguru have been denying the charges of Dravidianists and anti-Hindus for a longtime and now stand vindicated. However the Forest Minister informed the media that even though it’s come to their attention that not even a single cent of land has been encroached by Isha, a new team will be formed to investigate and ascertain that there are no violations. He also claimed that the complaints are mainly of constructing buildings without obtaining permission more than encroachment. But Isha has denied these allegations as well.
