Chief Justice of India BR Gavai on Wednesday announced that a special bench would be formed to hear a plea filed by Justice Yashwant Varma, who has challenged the findings of a three-judge in-house inquiry panel. The panel had indicted Justice Varma after a large sum of cash was discovered at his official residence in Delhi. CJI Gavai also disclosed that he had been involved in prior discussions on the matter with his predecessor, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, and would therefore recuse himself from hearing the case.
The matter was mentioned before a bench comprising CJI Gavai and Justices K. Vinod Chandran and Joymalya Bagchi. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Justice Varma, sought an urgent hearing of the petition. In response, CJI Gavai said, “It would not be proper for me to take up that matter. We will take a call and constitute a bench.”
Appearing for Justice Varma alongside Sibal were senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Rakesh Dwivedi, Sidharth Luthra, Siddharth Aggarwal, and advocates George Pothan Poothicote and Manisha Singh. Sibal urged the bench to expedite the matter, saying, “We have filed the petition on behalf of the Allahabad High Court judge. Some constitutional issues are involved. I request you to constitute a bench as soon as possible.”
The controversy dates back to March when a fire broke out at Justice Varma’s official residence in Delhi. During the firefighting operation, emergency personnel discovered bundles of cash, prompting the Supreme Court to initiate an internal probe. In April, Justice Varma was relieved of his judicial responsibilities and repatriated to the Allahabad High Court.
Also Read: Judge in cash row moves SC against panel report, impeachment
A three-member committee was subsequently constituted to investigate the matter. The panel comprised Chief Justice Sheel Nagu of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Chief Justice GS Sandhawalia of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, and Justice Anu Sivaraman of the Karnataka High Court.
After examining more than 50 witnesses, the committee concluded that the cash found was under the "covert or active control" of Justice Varma or his family. It observed that Justice Varma had failed to offer a credible explanation and instead alleged he was being framed. Justice Varma has challenged the in-house committee's methodology as well as its conclusions in his appeal to the Supreme Court. Additionally, he has objected to the suggestion that the President and Prime Minister begin the impeachment process.
According to the petition, Justice Varma was not allowed to cross-examine witnesses and was not given access to important evidence, among other procedural and natural justice infractions. It also asserts that significant video footage related to the case was ignored during the inquiry. Given the constitutional and procedural issues brought up in Justice Varma's plea, the Supreme Court is now anticipated to assemble a new bench to consider the case.
Also Read: Rajya Sabha receives motion to remove Justice Varma
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