Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma has resigned amid a process to impeach him, about a year after a huge stash of cash was found at his Delhi residence.
Justice Varma, who was repatriated from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court after the discovery of burnt currency notes, submitted his resignation letter to President Droupadi Murmu.
"While I do not propose to burden your august office with the reasons which have constrained me to submit this missive, it is with deep anguish that I hereby tender my resignation from the office of Judge of the Hon'ble High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, with immediate effect. It has been an honour to serve in this office," he wrote.
Justice Yashwant Varma Cash Row: A Timeline
A huge row erupted after a pile of unaccounted cash was found at the then Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma's official bungalow in the capital on March 14, during the Holi break.
The money was discovered after a fire broke out in the building and family members of the judge - who was not in Delhi at the time - called emergency services, who then called the police.
The then Chief Justice of India, Sanjiv Khanna, then formed a three-member committee of Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Sheel Nagu, Himachal Pradesh High Court Chief Justice GS Sandhawalia, and Karnataka High Court judge Justice Anu Sivaraman to probe the incident.
Photo Credit: PTI
The Delhi High Court Chief Justice for the time being was asked not to assign any judicial work to Justice Yashwant Varma.
On late March 22, Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya submitted the report on the Supreme Court website in an unprecedented move by the top court in the interest of transparency.
The report also included Justice Varma's response to the allegation and documents linked to the matter.
Justice Varma had strongly refuted allegations that a huge pile of cash was found at his house.
Photo Credit: IANS
"... I was totally shocked to see the contents of the video since that depicted something which was not found on site as I had seen it. It was this which prompted me to observe that this clearly appeared to be a conspiracy to frame and malign me," Justice Varma said, referring to a video of the cash found at his home.
In the report submitted to the Chief Justice of India, the Delhi High Court Chief Justice said, "... He [Justice Varma] also informed me that at the time of the incident, he was in Bhopal and got the information from his daughter. Justice Verma further told me that at the moment, black burnt material (soot) is lying in the room. I thereafter showed him the photographs and the video on my WhatsApp which were shared with me by the Commissioner of Police. He [Justice Varma] then expressed some apprehension about some conspiracy against him."
Justice Varma said the fire broke out in the storeroom near the staff quarters of his official residence on the intervening night of 14-15 March.
Photo Credit: PTI
"This room was generally utilised by all and sundry to store articles such as unused furniture, bottles, crockery, mattresses, used carpets, old speakers, garden implements as well as CPWD material. This room is unlocked and accessible both from the official front gate as well as the backdoor of the staff quarters. It is disconnected from the main residence and is surely not a room in my house as has been portrayed and suggested in the article which appeared in the Times of India and certain other news reports. On that date, my wife and I were not in Delhi and travelling in Madhya Pradesh and it was only my daughter and aged mother who were at home. I returned to Delhi only on the evening of 15 March from Bhopal travelling on an IndiGo flight with my wife," Justice Varma said.
On March 23, Justice Varma, who was appointed the Delhi High Court judge in October 2021, was removed from active duty.
The Supreme Court, during its meetings held on March 20 and 24, decided to transfer Justice Varma to the Allahabad High Court. The move had come amid stiff opposition from the Allahabad High Court Bar Association and criticism that any decision on his transfer should be made after an investigation.
Prayagraj lawyers staged an indefinite strike over the transfer of Justice Yashwant Varma to the Allahabad High Court
Photo Credit: IANS
Allahabad High Court lawyers had also launched an indefinite strike against his transfer to their high court.
On May 4, the Supreme Court-appointed three-judge panel submitted its inquiry report to the then chief justice of India.
The panel reportedly interviewed 55 witnesses and recorded Justice Varma's statement and submitted a 64-page report, which was first sent to President Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"... this committee holds the money/cash was found in the storeroom located within the premises of 30 Tughlaq Crescent... officially occupied by Justice Varma," the report said.
"... access to the storeroom was with Justice Varma and his family members, and (was) well-monitored without any outsiders getting access without permission," it said.
The report confirmed that "half-burnt currency notes" were, in fact, seen while firefighters were putting out the blaze that started late March 14 and spread to the storeroom in question.
One witness told the committee, "As I entered, I noticed on the right-hand side and in front, there was large pile of cash of Rs 500 notes lying on the floor. I was shocked and surprised at such large amounts of cash strewn on the floor... I saw this for the first time in my life."
In June, over 100 MPs signed their consent to bring an impeachment motion in Parliament against Justice Varma, and the Centre began the process to impeach him the next month.
In late July, the Supreme Court heard Justice Varma's plea over the three-member panel's recommendation of his removal.
Early August, the Supreme Court knocked back his challenge to the in-house committee.
The recommendation has legal sanction and is constitutionally valid, as was the three-judge committee, the court said, ruling Justice Varma's petition "not worth entertaining" and reproaching him for his not "confidence-inspiring" conduct, clearing the way for his impeachment process.
On August 12, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla constituted a three-member committee to probe charges against Justice Varma.
The committee was reconstituted this February. While two members -- Justice Aravind Kumar of the Supreme Court and Karnataka High Court advocate BV Acharya continued to be members of the panel -- a new member, Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court, was appointed in place of Madras High Court Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava.
The committee was expected to submit its report in the Monsoon Session.
