The controversial judge Justice Yashwant Varma was named as accused by CBI in February 2018 in case related to bank loan fraud by Simbhaoli Sugars Limited. For CBI, the FIR No: RCBD1/2018/E/0002 dated February 22, 2018 is a hot potato due to the name of Yashwant Varma as accused who had already became a Judge in Allahabad High Court in October 2014. The agency was registering FIR based on a complaint by Oriental Bank of Commerce filed on 2017, without knowing that Varma had already became a High Court judge, having impunity. The bank loan fraud case is an interesting one. Varma who was a lawyer with expertise in tax laws was also non-executive director of the big sugar company Simbhaoli Sugars Limited and during this period the company took a loan to give money to sugar farmers to buy their products. According to the Oriental Bank, which filed complaint to CBI named all the 10 directors of the sugar company for the bank loan fraud raging above Rs 109 Crore.
Justice Varma was named as ninth accused in the FIR along with sugar company’s managing director Gurmit Singh Mann, deputy managing director Gurpal Singh, CEO GSC Rao and CFO Sanjay Tapriya, executive directors Gursimran Kaur. The bank’s complaint also named other five non-executive directors along with Varma, who during the bank loan period was also a practicing lawyer in 2012. In October 2014, Advocate Yashwant Varma became Allahabad HC judge. When the loan amount was not repaid and the irregularities in the disbursement to sugar farmers were found in later years, the bank filed complained to CBI in November 2017 and within months in February 2018, the agency filed a 13 page FIR which also named Varma.
As per the Constitution, the High Court Judge and above enjoys impunity from cases and only Impeachment by Parliament is the only way to initiate actions against them. CBI was in fact, copy paste the complaint of the Bank in the FIR and no facing dilemma over this FIR for naming a person who had already became a High Court judge, having impunity from cases. According to many lawyers, as the CBI FIR wrongly included Varma’s name, the trial procedures are still at frozen stage.
