Cash at judge's residence: SC trashes plea seeking FIR against Justice Varma

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a plea seeking criminal prosecution of Justice Yashwant Varma, who is embroiled in a controversy surrounding the alleged discovery of a huge pile of burnt cash in the storeroom attached to his bungalow in the national capital after the fire brigade had gone there to douse a blaze on March 14. 

“There was an in-house inquiry report. It has been forwarded to the President of India and the Prime Minister of India for action. If you are seeking a writ of mandamus, you have to first make a representation to those authorities before which the issue is pending,” a bench headed by Justice Abhay S. Oka told advocate Mathews J. Nedumpara, the lead petitioner-in-person.

"You make a representation calling upon them (the President and the PM) to take action. If they don't take action, then you can come here," added the Bench, also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan.

If Justice Varma has committed the offence of accumulating wealth through corrupt means, an impeachment by itself will not suffice, said the petition, demanding his criminal prosecution.

"What has happened is a grave crime against public justice. When it is a judge, the defender of justice who is himself the accused or culprit, then it is no ordinary offence, the gravity is far greater, and so must be the punishment. [I]t is imperative that criminal law is set into motion, the matter is thoroughly investigated, and most importantly, ascertain who were bribe givers/beneficiaries and what was the cause/judgment in which justice was purchased," said the petition.

"It was indisputable that the huge volumes of money that were burned and partly burned and clandestinely removed were nothing but bribe/corruption -- a crime punishable under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Prevention of Corruption Act. There was no official explanation as to why no FIR was registered and why the criminal law was not set into motion, which would have meant the seizure of the currency notes securing the crime location, the arrest of suspects, etc.," added the plea.

In the last week of March, a bench of Justices Oka and Bhuyan disposed of another plea filed by the same petitioners seeking direction to the Delhi Police to register an FIR and cause an effective and meaningful investigation into the cash-discovery allegations.

"The ‘in-house’ inquiry is ongoing. If the report finds something wrong, an FIR could be directed, or the matter could be referred to the Parliament. Today is not the time to consider (the registration of FIR)," the bench had remarked then.

Questioning the non-registration of an FIR on March 14 itself, the day when unaccounted cash was reportedly found, the petition said the delay on the part of the authorities concerned to make available to the public the electronic records leads to the irresistible inference that what was going on was an attempt at a cover-up.

Following the alleged cash discovery, which sent shockwaves across the judicial corridors, the then CJI Sanjiv Khanna had constituted a 3-member committee to conduct an inquiry against Justice Varma. Amid the in-house probe, Justice Varma was transferred from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court. The Supreme Court Collegium had earlier recommended that the Centre repatriate Justice Varma to the Allahabad High Court.

Earlier this month, then CJI Khanna had forwarded to the President and the Prime Minister the report of the top court-appointed in-house enquiry panel. "Chief Justice of India, in terms of the In-House Procedure, has written to Hon’ble the President of India and Hon’ble the Prime Minister of India enclosing therewith copy of the 3-Member Committee report dated 03.05.2025 along with the letter/response dated 06.05.2025 received from Mr Justice Yashwant Varma," said a press statement released by the apex court on May 8.