yashwant varma controversy
**March 14, 2025: Fire at Justice Varma’s House**
There was a fire incident at the residence of Justice Yashwant Varma, a high-court judge, at approximately 11:35 PM. Firefighters were called in to douse the flames. After putting out the fire, authorities claimed to have found four to five sacks full of charred Indian currency notes in one of the rooms.
**March 15, 2025: Preliminary Observations and Reports**
The Delhi Police Commissioner was quoted as having said that the room where the fire broke out had half-burnt sacks of currency notes. Visual observations, through pictures and videos, reinforced these reports.
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**March 16, 2025: Preliminary Inquiry Commenced**
Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya of the Delhi High Court ordered an in-house investigation into the matter. He sent the Registrar-cum-Secretary to raid Justice Varma’s house. During the raid, they found a room with blackened walls, debris hanging from the ceiling, and partially burned items, including currency notes.
**March 21, 2025: Supreme Court’s Actions and Clarifications**
Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna formed a three-member panel to carry out a detailed probe into the complaint against Justice Varma. The panel includes Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of High Court of Punjab and Haryana; Justice GS Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court; and Justice Anu Sivaraman from the High Court of Karnataka. Moreover, the CJI asked the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court to keep any judicial assignments away from Justice Varma until the outcome of the inquiry.
The same day, the Supreme Court cleared that the transfer of Justice Varma to Allahabad High Court had nothing to do with the cash discovery issue. The transfer was a routine judicial posting, and the in-house inquiry was proceeding independently.
**Justice Varma’s Response**
In his denial of the claims, Justice Varma categorically dismissed any connection with the money recovered. He declared, “I say categorically that no money was ever deposited in that storeroom by me or by any member of my family and emphatically condemn the inference that the claimed money belonged to us.” He also raised issues of a potential conspiracy against him, observing that the room had been isolated from his residential areas and utilized as a storage space. **Previous Allegations: The 2018 Simbhaoli Sugar Mill Fraud Case**
The latest episode has again focused attention on Justice Varma’s previous financial transactions.
In 2018, he was mentioned in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR in the Simbhaoli Sugar Mill fraud case. As a non-executive director of Simbhaoli Sugars Limited, he was accused of being a part of the misappropriation of a ₹97.85 crore loan meant for farmers. Yet, the case stalled, and no action was ever taken against those listed, including Varma. In February 2024, a court directed the CBI to reopen the investigation, but the Supreme Court later reversed this order, resulting in the closure of the investigation. **Current Status** Up to March 24, 2025, the investigation into the money discovered at Justice Varma’s house continues. The Supreme Court has stressed that the in-house inquiry is being carried out according to established protocols, and further action will be determined by the outcome of the inquiry.
The public and the legal fraternity wait with bated breath for the probe to decide the course of Justice Varma’s career at the bench and the likely legal action.
