"Transfer Only First Step, Top Court Probing": Sources On Cash At Judge Home

The transfer of Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma - in whose home a pile of unaccounted cash was found last week - is not the "final step", sources told NDTV Friday afternoon, confirming the Supreme Court had ordered a preliminary inquiry into the matter.

Based on the outcome of the investigation, Justice Varma, 56, may either be asked to resign or be removed from office by Parliament, under Article 124(4) of the Constitution.

Source also said the Supreme Court Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna had sought a report - to be submitted either later today or tomorrow - from the Delhi High Court Chief Justice, DK Upadhyaya, and also briefed fellow judges in the top court. Talks lasted for over 30 minutes, sources said.

The judges, many of whom expressed concerns and suggested Justice Varma stand down from active duty, were told action would be taken and that the transfer was merely the first step in that process. 

How Can High Court Judges Be Removed?

In 1999 the Supreme Court laid down guidelines to deal with allegations of corruption, wrongdoing, and judicial irregularity against judges of the Constitutional Court.

According to these guidelines, on receiving a complaint the Chief Justice will first seek a reply from the judge concerned. If he is dissatisfied with the answer, or believes the matter requires further investigation, he will form an internal committee.

This committee will consist of one Supreme Court judge and two High Court Chief Justices.

After the committee submits a report and if the Chief Justice is then of the opinion that the alleged misconduct is of a grave nature requiring removal, he will ask the judge to resign.

If the judge were to refuse, the Chief Justice will then write to the government to initiate proceedings for his/her removal by Parliament, under Article 124(4) of the Constitution.

Calls For Action Against Justice Varma

News of the preliminary inquiry came after calls, from lawyers, including Supreme Court advocates, the opposition Congress, and legal experts, that merely transferring Justice Varma would not be enough.

The Congress was vehement on this point, pointing out Justice Varma had delivered judgements on controversial matters, including the Unnao rape case. "To maintain faith in the judiciary, it is important to find out whose money it is and why it was given to the judge..." spokesperson Pawan Khera said.

Justice Varma - who has not commented yet and is "on leave" - will be transferred to his parent High Court in Allahabad, the Supreme Court Collegium decided earlier, pending approval by the centre.

However, the Allahabad High Court Bar Association has opposed the move. In a strongly-worded letter to that court's Chief Justice, the group asked if the Allahabad High Court is a "trash bin".

The controversy surrounding Justice Varma - appointed to the Delhi High Court in 2021 - broke during Holi last week, when a blaze at his Delhi bungalow had to be put out by firefighters.

READ | Cash Found In Delhi Judge's Home, Supreme Court Collegium Acts

In doing so, they found the cash and alerted the police. And, as the news ran through official channels, the Supreme Court was alerted, and the five-member Collegium was convened.

Sources said the Chief Justice took a very serious view of the discovery of the cash and the Collegium concurred, agreeing unanimously on Justice Varma's transfer.

READ | "Demoralised": Delhi Chief Justice On Cash Found In Judge's Home

There was talk then of Justice Varma being asked to resign.

The controversy has drawn strong comments about the functioning of the Supreme Court Collegium, which is supposed to vet and appoint judges to the High Court and its own benches.

Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Indira Jaising called on the Collegium to pay serious attention to the issue of corruption in the judiciary, with Mr Sibal, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, saying, "... this is not something articulated by senior councils and lawyers for the first time..."

VIDEO | On recovery of cash from Delhi High Court judge's residence, advocate Indira Jaising says, "My approach would be to question the collegium and the way it functions. That was a duty cost upon the collegium to make a full free and frank disclosure of the facts of the case… pic.twitter.com/wLSjflEBlb

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) March 21, 2025

Ms Jaising, meanwhile, told news agency PTI, "... there was a duty cost upon the Collegium to make a full, free, and frank disclosure of the facts of the case when this matter came to its attention. There is also a duty cast on the Collegium to disclose the amount recovered."

The matter was also raised in Parliament after the Congress' Rajya Sabha MP, Jairam Ramesh, sought a response from the Chairperson - Jagdeep Dhankhar, a former lawyer himself.

READ | After Cash Found In Delhi Judge's Home, Jagdeep Dhankhar Says...

Mr Dhankhar said what bothered him most was that this did not come to light immediately, and called for a "systemic response... which is transparent, accountable, and effective..."

With input from agencies

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