Staff at High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma's residence, where a huge amount of cash was recovered, may be involved in getting the money removed from the site, sources said, citing a Supreme Court-appointed in-house enquiry committee.
The enquiry committee confirmed the recovery of cash from the residence of Justice Varma, who was serving as a judge of the Delhi High Court, following a fire incident on March 14.
According to sources, Justice Varma lied and gave misleading information about the incident when asked about it. There was no clarity on the actual amount of money as the burnt cash "disappeared" before the investigation, they said.
The room where the burnt money was allegedly found was locked and had to be broken open, sources said.
The Supreme Court-appointed in-house enquiry committee had recommended the removal of Justice Varma from his post following the incident.
In his response sent to Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, Justice Varma remained defiant and refused to step down from his judicial duty, sources earlier said. The CJI then forwarded the enquiry report and a copy of Justice Varma's response to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Under the House enquiry procedure for High Court judges, refusal to resign is the only instance that requires the CJI to write to the President and the Prime Minister.
The cash recovery from Justice Varma's residence was followed by a series of actions, including a preliminary enquiry by Delhi High Court Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya, an immediate withdrawal of judicial work from Justice Varma, and his subsequent transfer to the Allahabad High Court without any judicial responsibilities.
Justice Varma has consistently rejected the allegations, stating that the room where the cash was recovered was accessible to everyone. He asserted that "the very idea or suggestion that this cash was kept or stored by us was utterly preposterous".
Source: India Today
