Cash Row: Ex-Judge Yashwant Varma Found Guilty by Parliamentary Panel

Former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma has come under serious scrutiny after a parliamentary committee found that he failed to satisfactorily explain the large amount of cash discovered at his official residence in New Delhi. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla formed the committee to investigate the cash controversy, and the panel presented its report in Parliament on Wednesday. According to the report accessed by NDTV, the committee found Varma’s explanation regarding the cash inadequate. The panel examined the circumstances surrounding the recovery and questioned the former judge’s response regarding the presence, source and ownership of the money found inside a storeroom at his official residence.

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Fire at Official Residence Led to Cash Discovery

The controversy began on the night of March 14, 2025, when a fire broke out at Varma’s official residence at 30, Tughlak Crescent in New Delhi. Firefighters responding to the blaze discovered a large quantity of burnt Rs 500 currency notes inside a storeroom. The parliamentary committee examined the circumstances surrounding the discovery and said Varma could not provide a satisfactory explanation for the cash. The panel specifically questioned his inability to establish where the money came from and who owned it. The findings have added another major development to the controversy that has already raised questions about judicial conduct and accountability.

The committee also criticised the way officials handled the evidence after the cash came to light. According to the report, officials failed to properly secure and preserve important material evidence from the storeroom. The panel said staff attached to the premises disturbed the room before authorities could lawfully seal and inspect it. The committee also noted that the subsequent disappearance or non-availability of the currency notes remained unexplained. It blamed the failure to preserve the evidence and the disturbance of the storeroom for the loss of crucial material that could have helped investigators establish what happened to the cash.

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Committee Finds No Proof Varma Personally Removed Cash

However, the parliamentary panel did not conclude that Varma personally removed the money. Instead, it focused on his failure to provide a convincing explanation about its presence. The committee examined his response, including his reply dated March 22, 2025, and found it unsatisfactory. The report said Varma’s response lacked candour, transparency and institutional responsibility. The panel compiled its findings in two volumes and included oral and documentary evidence gathered during the investigation. The report therefore criticised Varma’s conduct while stopping short of claiming that he personally took away the recovered cash.

An earlier in-house committee formed by then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna had also examined the controversy. That committee concluded that Justice Varma exercised “active or tacit control” over the storeroom where investigators found the cash. Varma served as a judge of the Delhi High Court before authorities repatriated him to his parent court, the Allahabad High Court, following the controversy. Parliament later initiated proceedings to remove him from office. However, Varma subsequently resigned as a judge, making the removal proceedings against him effectively infructuous. The latest parliamentary report has nevertheless put the cash controversy back in focus by holding that the former judge failed to satisfactorily account for the money found at his residence.

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