Former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma Found Guilty By House Panel In Cash Row Case

Former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma Found Guilty By House Panel In Cash Row Case

New Delhi: Former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma, who was at the centre of a storm after pile of cash was found inside his residence in Delhi, failed to explain the presence of the cash. This is the finding of a panel formed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to probe the cash at judge’s house.

NDTV has accessed the details of the committee report that was presented in Parliament on Wednesday. The committee has found the ex-judge guilty in the cash recovery case.

A fire broke out in the official residence of Justice Varma on the night of March 14, 2025. Firefighters called to put out the blaze allegedly discovered massive amounts of burnt currency in a storeroom.

“Large quantities of unexplained Rs 500 currency notes were found in a storeroom inside the official residence at 30, Tughlak Crescent, New Delhi. The judge failed to provide a satisfactory explanation regarding the presence, source and ownership of the cash, the committee has stated in its report.

The panel has also questioned the subsequent probe into the cash recovery.

“Material evidence was not properly secured or preserved. The evidentiary condition of the storeroom was disturbed before lawful sealing and inspection,” the report has said.

The Parliamentary panel has further stated that the “subsequent disappearance/non availability of the currency notes remains unexplained”.

The report has blamed the “failure to preserve evidence” and allowing disturbance of the storeroom by staff attached to the premises” as the reason for loss of material evidence.

The committee has, however, noted that it “did not find proof that the judge personally removed the cash”.

In a scathing indictment of ex-Judge Yashwant Varma, the committee has stated that it found his explanation on the presence of cash, including the reply dated March 22 2025, “was found unsatisfactory”.

“Varma’s response lacked candour, transparency and institutional responsibility,” the report has stated.

The report is in two volumes along with oral and documentary evidence recorded during the course of the investigation.

Earlier, an in-house committee constituted by then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna concluded that Justice Varma had “active or tacit control” over the specific storeroom where the cash was hidden.

He was a judge of the Delhi High Court and repatriated to his parent court, the Allahabad High Court, following the controversy.

Removal proceedings were initiated by Parliament against the judge after the case exploded in public. Justice Varma has since resigned, and removal proceedings against him have virtually become infructuous.

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