Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna ordered an in-house inquiry with a three-judge panel, showing transparency in dealing with allegations against a judge.
Justice Yashwant Varma from the Delhi High Court is accused of having burnt currency notes found during a fire at his residence.
Actions Taken:
A preliminary report was obtained from the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court.
Justice Varma’s response was collected.
His judicial work has been suspended, and a proposal was made to send him back to his parent court in Allahabad.
The inquiry will be conducted by Chief Justices from Punjab & Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and a judge from Karnataka.
Justice Varma denies the allegations and suggests it is unlikely that cash was stored in a vulnerable, unlocked area at his residence.
The Supreme Court posted photos, a video, and the inquiry documents on its website, showing transparency.
There are doubts about the effectiveness of an internal inquiry.
A regular police investigation might be better to understand the cause of the fire and any tampering with the burnt notes.
The judiciary’s independence is protected not by avoiding investigation, but by being transparent and accountable.
Since the Court has a rule that no FIR (First Information Report) can be filed against judges without consulting the CJI, police investigations into judges are rare.
This makes internal inquiry mechanisms necessary.
The episode highlights that the judiciary should be open to accountability processes to maintain public trust, rather than avoiding scrutiny.
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