New Delhi, MARCH 22: Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjeev Khanna on Saturday established a three-member panel to investigate allegations against Delhi High Court Judge Justice Yashwant Varma, following the discovery of cash at his New Delhi residence on March 14.
The inquiry committee will be led by Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and includes Justice GS Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, and Justice Anu Sivaraman from the Karnataka High Court.
In addition to the probe, the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court has been instructed not to assign any judicial duties to Justice Varma during the investigation. The report from the Delhi High Court Chief Justice, including Justice Varma's response and other related documents, is being made available on the Supreme Court's website.
This development follows a day after the Supreme Court collegium recommended Justice Varma’s transfer to his parent High Court, the Allahabad High Court. In a statement issued on Friday, the Supreme Court Registry clarified that the recommendation for Varma’s transfer, where he would be ranked ninth in seniority, was independent of the in-house inquiry initiated by the Delhi High Court Chief Justice following the cash discovery.
The statement also addressed the "misinformation and rumors" circulating regarding the incident.
