Cash at judge’s house: SC reviews plea filed over refusal to order FIR against Justice Varma

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, seeking review of its verdict refusing to order registration of an FIR against Justice Yashwant Varma of the Allahabad High Court in connection with recovery of half-burnt wads of unaccounted cash from his official residence here during a fire incident on March 14.

Filed by three lawyers and a chartered accountant, the review petition seeks review of the top court’s August 7 verdict, which dismissed their plea after noting that the petitioners could not show any representation made to the government or police for the registration of an FIR.

“We have, thus, no hesitation to conclude that the petitioners never approached the police with any representation seeking registration of an FIR, far less the representation dated May 16, despite liberty granted by this court earlier. On these twin grounds of abuse of the process of law as well as this court and making of an incorrect statement on oath by the petitioners that we feel constrained not to interfere,” a bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice AG Masih had said.

The petitioners submitted there was an apparent error on the face of record in the top court judgment.

In its August 7 verdict, the Supreme Court had dismissed Justice Yashwant Varma’s petition challenging an in-house inquiry report, which indicted him for recovery of unaccounted cash at his residence in Delhi when he was a judge of the Delhi High Court.

It had also rejected Justice Varma’s plea challenging the then CJI Sanjiv Khanna’s May 8 recommendation to the President and Prime Minister for his removal from office.