The Congress on Friday reacted to the Supreme Court's decision to transfer the Delhi high court judge over the recovery of cash from his house, saying the matter cannot be hushed up by mere transfer.
Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the recovery of such a huge amount of cash from Justice Yashwant Varma's residence is a very serious matter.
"Justice Verma was hearing the Unnao rape case and many other serious cases. To maintain the country's faith in the judiciary, it is important to find out whose money it is and why it was given to the judge," Khera said.
He also took a swipe at the BJP-led Central government, saying that the fire brigade was doing a better job than investigating agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
"While removing the blindfold from the eyes of the goddess of justice, a former CJI had said that the law is not blind, it looks at everyone equally. This should also be proved in this case. By the way, the fire brigade is doing a better job than the ED and the CBI," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"While removing the blindfold from the eyes of the goddess of justice, a former CJI had said that the law is not blind, it looks at everyone equally. This should also be proved in this case. By the way, the fire brigade is doing a better job than the ED and the CBI," he said.
{{/usCountry}}According to people aware of the matter, the cash was discovered after a fire broke out at Justice Varma’s residence on the night of March 14, as reported by Hindustan Times.
Justice Varma and his wife were in Bhopal when his daughter and staff called the fire office. When the fire brigade and police arrived at the scene, they reportedly discovered a stash of cash in his outhouse. The incident sent shock waves through judicial corridors, prompting intervention from the Supreme Court collegium.
What collegium said
During a collegium meeting on Thursday, a unanimous decision was taken to transfer Justice Varma back to the Allahabad high court.
However, some collegium members urged Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna to go beyond the transfer and initiate an in-house inquiry against Justice Yashwant Varma.
As reported by Hindustan Times, two judges argued that mere transfer was not the “real solution” and that stronger steps were necessary to maintain public confidence in the judiciary. One collegium member insisted that Justice Varma should immediately be stripped of judicial work. Another judge advocated for an in-house inquiry, emphasising that such a serious incident demanded institutional accountability.
Meanwhile, a media report, citing unnamed sources, claimed that the Collegium has initiated an in-house probe into Delhi High Court Justice Yashwant Varma.