SC panel submits report on ‘cash at judge’s house’

The Supreme Court-appointed three-judge committee has submitted its report on its probe into the alleged discovery of unaccounted cash at the residence of former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma on March 14 to Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna.

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Based on the March 24 recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium, Justice Varma was on March 28 transferred to the Allahabad High Court where he has not been assigned any judicial work “for the time being”.

“The committee, consisting of Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice GS Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court and Justice Anu Sivaraman, Karnataka HC judge, submitted its report to the CJI on Sunday,” read a statement issued by Supreme Court on Monday.

The report contained the committee’s findings on the alleged cash discovery during a fire incident at Justice Varma’s Delhi residence on March 14. The exact contents of the report were not known.

The panel was set up by CJI Khanna after receiving an initial report from Delhi High Court Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya on the allegations against Justice Varma. The further course of action against him was likely to be decided on the basis of the latest report.

If the committee indicts Justice Varma, the CJI can advise him to resign or to seek voluntary retirement. However, if the judge in question ignores his advice, the CJI would apprise the President and the Prime Minister of the committee’s findings, warranting initiation of proceedings for his removal.