NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has refused to make public the in-house inquiry committee's report into the recent allegations involving the discovery of cash at the Delhi residence of Justice Yashwant Varma, who is currently serving as a judge of the Allahabad High Court but has not been assigned any work.
A Maharashtra-based lawyer, Amritpal Singh Khalsa, filed an application on May 9 under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, seeking a copy of the inquiry report. Khalsa also requested access to the communication reportedly sent by former Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna to the President and Prime Minister recommending Justice Varma’s removal.
The Supreme Court’s Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), Himani Sarad, rejected the RTI plea on May 21, stating that the requested documents could not be disclosed due to the principles laid down in the Supreme Court of India vs Subhash Chandra Agarwal case.
“The information cannot be provided in view of the tests outlined by the Supreme Court in its judgement dated November 13, 2019 in a civil appeal, including considerations of judicial independence, the proportionality test, fiduciary relationships, invasion of privacy, and breach of confidentiality. These are in line with Sections 8(1)(e) and 11(1) of the RTI Act, 2005,” Sarad stated in her reply to Khalsa.
On the same day, the apex court also dismissed a separate plea seeking the registration of an FIR against Justice Varma over the alleged cash recovery incident.
On May 8, following the submission of the in-house committee’s report, CJI Sanjiv Khanna (now retired) sent a letter to the central government recommending the impeachment of Justice Varma. A senior Supreme Court official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Justice Varma was asked to resign after being indicted but refused to do so.
In accordance with in-house procedure, the former CJI sent a letter to the President and Prime Minister, enclosing the committee’s report dated 3 May and Justice Varma’s response dated 6 May. The three-judge committee was appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate the alleged cash recovery incident that took place on March 14 at Justice Varma’s residence. The committee submitted its findings to the CJI on May 4.
The panel consisted of Justice Sheel Nagu (Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court), Justice G.S. Sandhawalia (Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court), and Justice Anu Sivaraman (Judge of the Karnataka High Court).
The committee conducted a thorough probe over 40 days, examining evidence and recording the statements of over 45 individuals, including Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora and the head of the Delhi Fire Service.
The investigation focused on key questions such as the ownership of the cash, who placed it in the storeroom, and why the alleged currency was not shown to Justice Varma’s family, as he claimed. The panel also examined the remains of burnt currency visible in a video shared by the Delhi Police Commissioner with the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court.
Justice Varma has strongly denied the allegations, maintaining that the room in question was an outhouse, separate from his living quarters.
“I state unequivocally that no cash was ever placed in that storeroom by me or any of my family members. The suggestion that this cash belonged to us is completely preposterous. It is incredulous to suggest that one would store cash in an open, accessible outhouse near staff quarters, entirely disconnected from our living space. I only wish the media had conducted a proper inquiry before I was indicted and defamed,” Justice Varma said in his reply, a copy of which was accessed by TNIE.
