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The Supreme Court collegium must conduct a thorough inquiry into allegations levelled against Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma and apprise about provisions that allow for an in-house committee formation to investigate allegations of such nature, Senior Advocate Adish Aggarwala, former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president said on Friday.
The Supreme Court collegium- led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna had met on Thursday evening and decided to transfer Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma back to his parent Allahabad High Court, following an adverse report about the alleged recovery of cash during a fire at his residence. "The Collegium of the Supreme Court should make a thorough inquiry. There's nothing wrong in transfer," Aggarwala told ANI. "Transfer is a normal thing and not a stigma. I am not admitting that there can be a situation of corruption because I feel that sometimes, people who are not getting favourable results may also plant. Here, I feel, when the judge himself and his family members were not there and such thing happened, including fire incident and video being made, there is suspicion," the senior advocate said. Meanwhile, senior Advocate Vikas Singh who was also the former president of the SCBA demanded an in-house inquiry. He said that if the judge was unable to provide a justification for the discovered cash, the matter must be taken "seriously." "It is a very serious matter because judges people have trust in the functioning of the judiciary and if this kind of cash is discovered in the residence of a judge...this is a matter which is almost a week old now and probably there is no explanation forthcoming from the judge. If this is the case, this (incident) has to be taken very seriously," Singh told ANI. "In my view, transferring is not a solution. First, there should be a small in-house inquiry," he added. Clarifying that he was not aware of the "facts" in this matter, Senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal flagged the issue of corruption at large within the judiciary and society as "serious". "First of all, I am not aware of any of the facts. I have also read it in the newspaper. However, the issue of corruption within the judiciary is a very serious issue. This is not something that has been articulated by senior councils and lawyers in the country for the first time. It has been going on for years," Sibal told ANI. He suggested that the apex court must address the issues in the process of appointing judges. Sibal added that corruption remains an issue at large in society and not only in the judiciary. "It is time for the Supreme Court to start looking at issues of how the appointment process takes place. The appointment process should be more transparent and carefully done. Corruption is a very serious issue in society as well, and the corruption has increased despite what the Prime Minister has said," Sibal said. Meanwhile, the SC Collegium said it would take follow-up action against Justice Yashwant Varma "if and as required". "Supreme Court Collegium met, and CJI took note of the issue. The transfer is not a finality, it's a process. In the interest of the institution, it's just a step. Further action if and as required in the future will be taken," ANI has learnt. As is the practice, the Collegium's resolution has yet to be uploaded to the Supreme Court website. Justice Varma took oath as Delhi High Court judge in October 2021. He was appointed as a judge in Allahabad High Court on October 13, 2014. (ANI)
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