The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) by the Delhi Police concerning the alleged discovery of burnt wads of cash at the official residence of Delhi High Court judge, Justice Yashwant Varma.
A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan deemed the PIL “premature,” highlighting that an in-house inquiry into the matter is currently underway. The court emphasised that numerous options would be available to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) upon the conclusion of the probe.
“We have seen the prayers. After the in-house inquiry is over, several options are open. If the report indicates something is wrong, the chief justice (of India) can direct the register of the FIR or refer the matter to the Parliament after examining the report,” the bench stated.
The court reiterated that it was not the appropriate time to consider the petition, given the ongoing internal investigation. “Today it is not the day to consider this petition. After the in-house report, all options are open. Why should we go into this question? The petition is premature because internal inquiry is going on,” the bench added.
The argument against ‘in-house inquiry’
Advocate Mathews J Nedumpara, who filed the PIL along with three others, argued that the investigation should be conducted by the police, not an in-house committee. “The in-house committee is not a statutory authority and cannot be a substitute for criminal investigations undertaken by specialised agencies,” he asserted.
Nedumpara raised concerns about the lack of an immediate FIR, the absence of a seizure report, the delay in public disclosure, and the collegium’s silence. He argued that the common man had legitimate questions that needed answers.
However, the Supreme Court instructed Nedumpara to allow the ongoing process to conclude, assuring him that options would be available afterward. The bench emphasised the importance of educating the public about the existing system.
Supreme Court on ‘PIL’
The court order recorded, “As far grievance regarding the third respondent (Justice Varma) is concerned, as can be seen from the website of the Supreme Court, in-house procedure is in progress. After the report is submitted there will be several options open for the chief justice of India after the conclusion of the inquiry.”
The court further stated, “Therefore at this stage, it will not be appropriate to entertain this writ petition. There are wider prayers against some of the decisions of this court seeking to read them down. At this stage, according to us, it is not necessary to go into that aspect. Subject to what is observed above petition is disposed of.”
(With PTI Inputs)