Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna has written to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and shared the report of the Supreme Court-appointed three-member panel which inquired into cash discovery allegations against Allahabad High Court’s Justice Yashwant Varma. Along with the panel’s report, the CJI also shared the response of Justice Varma. This is expected to be the initiation of impeachment process.
“Chief Justice of India, in terms of the in-house procedure, has written to the President of India and the Prime Minister of India enclosing therewith copy of the three-member committee report dated May 3 along with the letter/response dated May 6 received from Justice Yashwant Varma,” the apex court said in a statement.
The CJI had previously forwarded the panel’s report to Justice Varma and sought his response following the principle of natural justice. The three-member panel comprising of Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Sheel Nagu, Himachal Pradesh High Court Chief Justice GS Sandhawalia and Justice Anu Sivaraman of the Karnataka High Court had submitted its report to the CJI.
The panel analysed evidence and recorded the statements of over 50 people, including Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora and Delhi Fire Service chief who were among the first responders to the fire incident at Justice Varma’s Lutyens Delhi residence at around 11.35 pm on March 14. Justice Varma was a judge of the Delhi High Court at that time.