The Supreme Court on Friday clarified that the transfer of Justice Yashwant Varma from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court is unrelated to the recent discovery of a large sum of cash at his residence. The Court strongly condemned the spread of misinformation and speculation regarding the matter.
In a press note, the Supreme Court stated, “There is misinformation and rumours being spread with regard to the incident at the residence of Justice Yashwant Varma. On receiving the information, the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court commenced the in-house enquiry procedure collecting evidence and information.”
Transfer a routine decision
Justice Varma’s transfer to Allahabad High Court was already announced earlier, with the Supreme Court emphasizing that the decision was a routine judicial transfer and had no connection to the cash recovery incident.
The Court assured that an in-house inquiry into the matter is being conducted as per standard procedures, and the transfer decision was made independently of the investigation.
Inquiry underway
Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya, who initiated the inquiry before the March 20 collegium meeting, is set to submit a report to Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna. The Supreme Court will decide on any further action after reviewing the findings.
The controversy erupted after reports claimed that firefighters discovered cash in multiple rooms of Justice Varma’s Delhi residence following a fire on March 14. Reports indicate that Justice Varma was not in town at the time of the incident.
(With PTI inputs)