CJI Constitutes 3-Member Committee to Inquire Into Allegations Against Justice Yashwant Varma Over Cash Recovery
Kiran Raj
Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna has set up a three-member committee to investigate allegations against Delhi High Court Judge Yashwant Varma. The inquiry comes under the Supreme Court’s in-house procedure following the reported discovery of unaccounted cash at Justice Varma’s official residence.
The committee includes Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court; Justice GS Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court; and Justice Anu Sivaraman, Judge of the Karnataka High Court.
The Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court has been directed not to assign any judicial work to Justice Varma during the pendency of the inquiry.
The development follows a report from Delhi High Court Chief Justice DK Upadhyay to the Chief Justice of India. The report, based on a preliminary inquiry, refers to the recovery of large sums of cash from Justice Varma’s official residence, reportedly discovered after a fire incident at the premises. Justice Varma’s response, along with the Delhi High Court Chief Justice’s report and other related documents, will be published shortly on the Supreme Court’s website.
In addition to the inquiry, the Supreme Court Collegium is also processing a proposal to transfer Justice Varma to the Allahabad High Court, which is his parent High Court. During a full court meeting of Supreme Court judges on Friday, it was discussed that a transfer alone would not suffice and that further steps were required.
The full court unanimously decided to initiate an in-house inquiry, with the transfer being treated as an initial measure. The transfer is currently underway but awaits government approval.
