Sadhguru Approaches Delhi HC Seeking Protection of Personality Rights Against AI
Spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, on Friday, approached the Delhi High Court seeking protection of his personality rights in light of the unauthorised and misleading use of his name and image by websites employing artificial intelligence.
Alleging that such misuse was being carried out to promote products fraudulently, he urged the court to intervene and issue necessary takedown orders to prevent further exploitation of his identity. The bench of Justice Saurabh Benarjee presided over the matter.
During the proceedings, it was submitted that Sadhguru’s identity was being misused to falsely endorse products, thereby misleading the public. He stated that one such instance involved the book ‘Garbh Yatra’, which featured his image on its cover without permission. According to him, consumers were placing blind trust in these offerings due to his established reputation, turning such misuse into a fraudulent practice. He further contended that certain entities were using artificial intelligence to impersonate him and deceive the public.
In response, counsel representing Google submitted that intermediaries could only act upon specific reports, and affected individuals were required to provide exact URLs for any remedial steps to be taken. Following a brief hearing, the bench informed the parties that an interim order would be issued shortly.
Recently, the court restrained YouTuber Shyam Meera Singh in Sadhguru's plea from utilizing any media outlet and/or social media platforms to make libelous, misleading, and disparaging allegations against Isha Foundation. The bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad held, “Continuous circulation of the video is likely to cause harm to the Plaintiff/Trust’s reputation and as stated that more than 09 lakhs views and more than 13500 comments have already been reported. If the video is not taken down immediately, the Plaintiff/Trust will suffer loss of reputation which cannot be compensated monetarily”.
The court, while passing the restraining order, emphasized that “reputation is an integral part of the dignity of each individual and there is a need to balance between freedom of speech and freedom of expression vis-a-vis the right to reputation which has been considered as a part of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India".
For Petitioner: Advocate Angad Singh Makkar
Case Title: Sadhguru Jagdish Vasudev v Igor Isakov (CS(COMM) - 578/2025)
[Inputs: ANI News]