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Judicial Corruption

Cash discovery row: SC questions Justice Yashwant Varma over his petition

The Supreme Court on Monday questioned Justice Yashwant Varma over his plea to invalidate an in-house inquiry panel report indicting him over the discovery of huge cache of burnt cash from his official residence during his tenure as a Delhi High Court judge. "Why did you appear before the inquiry committee? Did you come to the court that the video be removed? Why did you wait for the inquiry to be completed and the report be released? Did you take a chance of a favourable order there first," a bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and A G Masih asked senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who was representing Justice Varma. The top court further quizzed Justice Varma over the parties he had made in his plea and said he should have filed the in-house inquiry report with his plea. Sibal submitted there was a process under Article 124 (the Establishment and constitution of the Supreme Court), and a judge couldn't be a subject matter of public debate. "The release of video on SC website, public furor

Updated On : 28 Jul 2025 | 1:32 PM IST

Cash row: Will constitute bench to hear Justice Varma's plea, says SC

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would constitute a bench to hear Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma's plea seeking to invalidate a report by an in-house inquiry panel, which found him guilty of misconduct in the cash discovery row. Justice Varma has also sought quashing of the May 8 recommendation by then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna urging Parliament to initiate impeachment against him. The matter was mentioned for urgent listing before a bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and Joymalya Bagchi. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who mentioned the matter for Justice Varma, said the plea was in respect of recommendation made by the then CJI for removal of Justice Varma. "We have raised some constitutional issues. I request your lordships to list it as early as possible," he said. The CJI said, "I will have to constitute a bench". He said it might not be proper for him to take up the matter as he was also a part of the ...

Updated On : 23 Jul 2025 | 12:46 PM IST

Cash discovery row: Justice Varma urges SC to accord urgent hearing on plea

Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court to accord urgent hearing on his plea seeking to invalidate a report by an in-house inquiry panel, which found him guilty of misconduct in the cash discovery row. "I will have to constitute a bench," Chief Justice B R Gavai told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who mentioned the matter for Varma. The CJI was heading a bench which also comprised Justices K Vinod Chandran and Joymalya Bagchi. Sibal requested the bench to list the matter as early as possible, saying they have raised some constitutional issues in the plea. Varma has also sought quashing of the May 8 recommendation by then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna urging Parliament to initiate impeachment against him. The three-judge panel headed by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu of the Punjab and Haryana High Court conducted the inquiry for 10 days, examined 55 witnesses and visited the scene of the accidental fire that started at around 11.35 pm o

Updated On : 23 Jul 2025 | 12:32 PM IST

Cash row: Congress seeks SC report on allegations against Justice Varma

The Congress has asked the government to share with it the report of a Supreme Court-appointed committee that probed graft allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma so that it can firm up its stand on the issue of his impeachment before the Monsoon session of Parliament, party sources said on Thursday. The government, however, is yet to respond, the sources said. Several burnt sacks containing cash were allegedly discovered at Justice Varma's residence in Delhi after a fire broke out there in March, when he was a Delhi High Court judge. Though the judge, who was later transferred to the Allahabad High Court, has claimed ignorance about the cash, the Supreme Court-appointed committee indicted him after speaking to a number of witnesses and recording his statement. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has initiated discussions with all political parties to bring an impeachment motion against Justice Varma in Parliament's Monsoon session, starting from July 21. The Cong

Updated On : 12 Jun 2025 | 1:41 PM IST

SC to urgently hear plea for FIR against Justice Yashwant Varma in cash row

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to list for urgent hearing a plea seeking registration of an FIR against Allahabad High Court's Justice Yashwant Varma in connection with the cash discovery row. A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih took note of the submission of lawyer and petitioner Mathews Nedumpara, and said that if defects are cured then it can be listed for hearing Tuesday. It can be listed tomorrow if defects (in the petition) are cured, the CJI said. Nedumpara said he would remove defects, if any, from the petition and urged the bench that it be listed on Wednesday as he is unavailable on Tuesday. The bench agreed to list it on Wednesday provided defects are cured. After an in-house inquiry panel indicted the judge, the then CJI Sanjiv Khanna had nudged Justice Varma to resign. The then CJI wrote to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Justice Varma refused to resign. The petition, filed by Nedumpara and

Updated On : 19 May 2025 | 11:52 AM IST

Delhi HC to hear 52 pending cases previously listed before Justice Varma

Justice Yashwant Varma name became embroiled in controversy after a substantial amount of cash was allegedly discovered at his residence during a fire on March 14

Updated On : 21 Apr 2025 | 1:13 PM IST

Cash-at-home row: Justice Yashwant Varma takes oath as Allahabad HC judge

This development comes amidst an ongoing investigation into allegations of semi-burnt sacks of cash being recovered from his residence just weeks ago

Updated On : 06 Apr 2025 | 8:38 AM IST

Cash discovery row: Delhi fire services chief appears before SC probe panel

The Supreme Court-appointed three-member in-house inquiry committee, probing allegations of alleged discovery of wads of cash from Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma's residence, met Delhi Fire Services chief Atul Garg here on Thursday. According to sources, Garg deposed before the probe panel at Haryana State Guest House at Chanakyapuri and recorded his statement. Garg, however, had denied claims of the cash discovery by the fire fighters. Earlier in the day, the leaders of six High Court bar associations met Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and sought withdrawal of the recommendation to transfer Justice Varma to the Allahabad High Court. Soon after the meeting, Allahabad High Court Bar Association (AHCBA) president Anil Tiwari said the CJI had assured them of considering the demands. However, the CJI did not promise anything, said sources privy to the development. In an unprecedented move, the Supreme Court late on Saturday night uploaded on its website an in-house

Updated On : 28 Mar 2025 | 7:20 AM IST

Cash stash at judge's home: Phones of 8 Delhi cops under forensic probe

Mobile phones of eight Delhi Police have been seized and sent to the forensic department as part of an investigation into the alleged discovery of a cash pile from Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma's residential premises, police sources said on Thursday. Under this process, the mobile of the Station House Officer (SHO) of Tughlaq Road Police Station, investigation officer Havaldar Roopchand, Sub-Inspector Rajneesh, two personnel who arrived at the scene on mobile bike patrol, and three PCR personnel are being examined, the sources said. Authorities are now trying to determine whether any videos were recorded on these mobile phones when the officers arrived at the scene during the fire, one of the sources said. If any videos were taken, investigators will check whether they were tampered with in any way, the source added. Delhi Police has also recorded the statements of all these officers, sources said. On Wednesday, a team led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Deves

Updated On : 27 Mar 2025 | 10:05 PM IST

CJI assures bar leaders will consider demand over Justice Varma transfer

Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna on Thursday met representatives of several bar bodies to discuss the proposed transfer of Delhi High Court's Justice Yashwant Varma to the Allahabad High Court. The bar bodies are seeking withdrawal of collegium's recommendation to transfer Justice Varma to the Allahabad High Court. Sources said the CJI's office called the representatives of the bar bodies for a meeting with Justice Khanna at around 1.45 pm and the meeting is still underway. Earlier in the day, representatives of the bar associations of high courts of Allahabad, Gujarat, Kerala, Jabalpur, Karnataka and Lucknow submitted a memorandum to the CJI's office and sought an appointment to meet Justice Khanna. They have also raised the issue of alleged tampering of evidence at Justice Varma's official residence where burnt wads of cash were purportedly discovered on March 14 during a fire incident. They have questioned non-registration of an FIR in the incident.

Updated On : 27 Mar 2025 | 2:54 PM IST

People's confidence in judicial system on decline, says Kapil Sibal

Asserting that the confidence in the judicial system seems to be on the decline in people's perception, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal has said alternatives can only be found when both the government and the judiciary accept that the systems in place, including for judges' appointments, are not working. In an interview with PTI, Sibal talked about what ails the judicial system, citing examples of how bail is not being granted in most cases by district and sessions courts, and highlighted the issue of the controversial speech made by Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav of the Allahabad High Court last year. Sibal, speaking as a lawyer and not as the president of the Supreme Court Bar association, refrained from commenting on the matter of alleged discovery of a huge stash of cash at the residence of Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma. "There is an in-house procedure to deal with the matter. Now, in the absence of facts I don't think as a responsible citizen of this country I should be ...

Updated On : 23 Mar 2025 | 1:38 PM IST

Shortage of 18 judges in ten courts across Goa: Minister tells Assembly

Goa Law Minister Aleixo Sequeira has told the legislative assembly that there is a shortage of 18 judges in 10 different courts, including district courts, across the state. In a written reply tabled in the House on Friday, the minister shared the details about the vacancies in the courts. As per the data, there is a shortage of as many as four judges in the civil and criminal courts in South Goa's Margao, while there is a shortage of three judges at the district and sessions court in this town. There is a shortage of two judges each at the district and sessions court in North Goa's Panaji, civil and criminal court there and civil and criminal court in Mapusa. It shows that there is a shortage of one judge each in the civil and criminal courts in Ponda (South Goa), Bicholim (North Goa), Gram Nyayalaya, Sattari at Valpoi (North Goa), Vasco (South Goa) and Gram Nyayalaya, Sanguem (South Goa). The strength of additional judges has been calculated for the state based on the 'Unit ...