Justice Yashwant Varma indicted in cash case, told to resign or face impeachment

Justice Yashwant Varma of Allahabad High Court has been indicted by an in-house panel over allegations of unaccounted cash found at his residence, and has been asked to resign or face possible impeachment, according to sources familiar with the development.

The report was submitted to Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, who has reportedly given Justice Varma until Friday, 9 May, to respond. If the judge does not resign, the CJI is expected to forward the panel’s findings to the President of India with a recommendation for impeachment proceedings.

The three-member committee was set up by the CJI on 22 March, following a fire at Justice Varma’s Delhi residence on 14 March. Firefighters responding to the blaze allegedly discovered large amounts of cash, prompting questions over its origin. At the time of the incident, Justice Varma and his wife were away in Madhya Pradesh, and only his mother and daughter were at home.

A video showing bundles of cash being burnt in the fire later surfaced and was shared with the Delhi Police Commissioner. This led the Supreme Court to publish both the preliminary report and Justice Varma’s response—an unprecedented step.

The panel comprised Chief Justices Sheel Nagu (Punjab & Haryana), GS Sandhawalia (Himachal Pradesh), and Justice Anu Sivaraman (Karnataka). Their inquiry began on 25 March and concluded with the submission of the report on 4 May.

Justice Varma has denied any wrongdoing, claiming he is being framed. Since the probe began, he was repatriated to the Allahabad High Court—his parent court—and his judicial work has been suspended on the CJI’s directions. The Allahabad High Court Bar Association had earlier protested his return.

Though a plea seeking registration of an FIR against Justice Varma was filed, the Supreme Court declined to entertain it while the in-house process was ongoing.

As per reports, Justice Varma has also consulted a legal team that includes senior advocates Siddharth Agarwal and Arundhati Katju, among others.