Delhi HC Directs Tamil Magazine Nakkheeran to Remove Defamatory Content Against Isha Foundation

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has directed Tamil media outlet Nakkheeran Publications to delete and take down defamatory content published against Isha Foundation, and has dismissed the application filed by Nakkheeran under Order 7 Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure seeking rejection of the defamation suit filed by the Foundation.

Justice Subramonium Prasad, while passing the interim order on March 19, 2026, in the matter of Isha Foundation v. Google LLC and Others, remarked, “Order 7 Rule 11 dismissed. Directed to bring it all down.”

Isha Foundation had filed a defamation suit before the Delhi High Court in 2024 against Nakkheeran Publications and its editor Gopal, claiming that content published by the outlet maligned the Foundation’s reputation and seeking ₹3 crore in damages. Google LLC was also made a party to the suit on account of the defamatory material appearing on Google search and videos being hosted on its platform, YouTube.

The Foundation contended that Nakkheeran published content alleging various forms of misconduct within the organisation, including claims of exploitation, brainwashing, and illegal activities, as well as suggestions that individuals at the Foundation were held against their will or coerced into certain actions.

The Foundation further submitted that Nakkheeran continued publishing such articles despite a Supreme Court order closing proceedings in a habeas corpus petition filed by a father alleging that two of his daughters had been brainwashed by the Foundation.

The issue had arisen after the Madras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government to submit details of all criminal cases registered against the Isha Foundation. Subsequently, a man approached the Court alleging that his two daughters, aged 42 and 39, had been brainwashed into residing at the Isha Yoga Centre.

On October 18, 2024, a Supreme Court Bench comprising then Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra noted that both women were adults who had clearly expressed their wish to reside at the Yoga Centre, and accordingly closed the habeas corpus petition, while clarifying that the order would not preclude any other investigation by the police.

Following the filing of the defamation suit before the Delhi High Court, Nakkheeran Publications filed a transfer petition before the Supreme Court seeking transfer of the case from Delhi to Chennai. Isha Foundation subsequently filed an application in the transfer petition seeking to restrain further publication of defamatory content.

In July 2025, the Supreme Court asked the Foundation to agitate its plea for injunction before the High Court, and also permitted Nakkheeran to raise its contentions in an application under Order 7 Rule 11 CPC for rejection of the plaint. The High Court was requested to take up the applications expeditiously.

The High Court has now disposed of both applications, directing removal of the defamatory content and rejecting Nakkheeran’s application for rejection of the suit.