"Proof That Cash Found At Justice Varma's Home": Probe Panel's Findings

A three-member panel of senior judges has recommended the removal of Justice Yashwant Varma, the former Delhi High Court judge at whose residence "piles of burnt Rs 500 notes" was found in March.

The Supreme Court-appointed panel interviewed 55 witnesses and recorded Justice Varma's statement, and submitted a 64-page report first sent to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. NDTV has accessed this report and these two paragraphs are the operative parts.

The first is on page 60 - "... 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 second is on page 59 - "... access to the storeroom was with Justice Varma and his family members, and (was) well-monitored without any outsiders getting access without permission".

The report also confirms 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."

The piles of burnt cash are "highly suspicious items and... not small denomination... could not have been placed... without the active consent of Justice Varma or his family", the report said.

The committee also examined the roles of the judge's daughter, Diya Varma, and his private secretary, Rajinder Karki, who allegedly told firefighters not to mention the cash.

Taken together the committee concluded there is enough evidence to begin impeaching Justice Varma, who is now a judge of the Allahabad High Court, to which he had been transferred, despite strenuous objections from the Bar and legal activists, days after the cash was found.

"... this committee is firmly of the view there is sufficient substance in the allegations raised (by) the Chief Justice of India (then Sanjiv Kumar) ... and the misconduct found proved is serious enough to call for initiation of proceedings for removal of Justice Yashwant Varma..."

In response to the charges Justice Varma had insisted neither his family members nor he had any knowledge of the cash, and that the room in which the money was found - which is separate from the main house - was freely accessible by anyone already on the grounds of the bungalow.

Earlier this month sources told NDTV an impeachment process will almost certainly begin shortly; Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju will speak to all political parties to establish a consensus on what will be the first time a sitting judge has been forcibly removed from office.

NDTV Explains | How Do You Remove A Sitting Judge? Impeachment Explained

No judge in independent India has been impeached, although there have been five it was a possibility. The most recent case was in 2018 and involved ex-Chief Justice of India Deepak Misra, who was accused of administrative misconduct and arbitrary allocation of cases.

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