Days after unaccounted cash was found in Delhi High Court Judge Yashwant Varma’s official house, the Supreme Court Collegium on Monday announced a resolution to repatriate him to the Allahabad High Court. “The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meetings held on 20th and 24th March, has recommended repatriation of Justice Yashwant Varma, Judge, High Court of Delhi, to the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad,” a statement by the Supreme Court said.
At approximately 11:35 p.m. on March 14, a fire broke out at Justice Varma’s official apartment on Tughlak Road, leading to the discovery of the money. It is thought that stacks of cash, some of which were allegedly burnt, were found in the warehouse by first responders, including DFS and probably police personnel. At the time, Justice Varma was in Bhopal with his spouse.
Any link to the money found at his home has been flatly denied by Justice Yashwant Varma. He asserts that he is being set up in what he called a “malign conspiracy.” The Supreme Court collegium unanimously recommended on March 20 that Justice Varma be transferred to his parent high court, the Allahabad High Court.
But during discussions, at least two members pushed for a quick internal investigation, arguing that a simple transfer was insufficient. In order to guarantee institutional responsibility, one judge demanded that Justice Varma be promptly removed from his position as a judge, while another pushed for a formal investigation.
The proposed removal of Justice Yashwant Verma was challenged by the Allahabad High Court Bar Association (HCBA), which claimed it raised a “serious question as to whether the Allahabad High Court is trash bin.” Corruption is unacceptable, according to HCBA, which stated in a letter that it “was taken aback” by the choice to send Justice Verma to his parent high court.
A three-person committee was established by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna on March 22 to look into the accusations made against Justice Varma.
In 2016, Justice Varma was initially appointed to the Allahabad High Court as a judge. In October 2021, he was sent to the Delhi High Court. He was the Uttar Pradesh government’s standing counsel prior to his promotion.
