'No institution entitled to violate fundamental rights of inmates'

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Thursday said that while it cannot force the women living in a Rohini ashram under "shocking" conditions to live with their parents, no institution has the licence to conduct its affairs in a manner that violates the fundamental rights of the inmates. A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi, which was hearing pleas concerning the state of affairs at Adhyatmik Vidhyalaya — founded by self-styled spiritual guru Virender Dev Dixit, said that it was inclined to direct the Delhi government to take over the institution's management and asked the government counsel to seek instructions.

The bench, also comprising Justice Navin Chawla, observed that the ashram was run by a "baba" who has been charge-sheeted by the CBI for the offence of rape and is now absconding.

The bench recollected an earlier report on the matter which revealed a "shocking state of affairs" at the institution and claimed that the women inmates were living in "jail-like conditions", without any doors on toilet cubicles.

The court also asked the counsel for CBI to file a status report on the state of the investigation in the matter.

"There is very thorough indoctrination… How can we accept that any sane person would live in these conditions? Can we shut our eyes to it? Who is funding it? Who is managing? This is shocking that this is going on in the capital… We don't want (that) in the garb of spirituality, the inhumane situation continues," observed that court. The court stated that it is not proposing that the ashram should be shut down but that it has to run in a manner which is consistent with the inmates' rights to privacy and bodily integrity and it falls on the State to ensure that infraction of individuals' fundamental rights is prevented and remedied.