Amid the controversy over huge unaccounted cash recovered from Delhi High Court Judge Yashwant Varma, his transfer has prompted the Allahabad High Court Bar Association to say, we are not a "trash bin".
The Bar Association's statement also states that approximately Rs 15 crore was recovered from the residence of Yashwant Verma.
According to Press Trust Of India, in a resolution passed soon after the news of the judge's transfer by a Supreme Court collegium was reported, the association said, "We were taken aback that the Supreme Court has transferred Justice Yashwant Varma back to Allahabad High Court."
The Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna decided to transfer Justice Yashwant Verma back to his parent High Court, the Allahabad High Court.
What Did The Allahabad HC Bar Association Say?
The association's letter states that it was surprised by the decision of the Supreme Court Collegium to transfer Justice Verma to his parent High Court.
"This decision of the Collegium raises a serious question - is the Allahabad High Court a trash bin? This matter becomes important when we examine the current situation... wherein the Allahabad High Court is short of judges... new judges have not appointed for many years," as quoted by Live Law.
The bar association also raised concern over the shortage of judges in the Allahabad High Court and questioned the process of appointment of new judges by the collegium like senior Delhi advocates Kapil Sibal and Indira Jaising.
"It is also of grave concern that while elevating members of the Bar, the Bar was never consulted. Consideration of eligibility appears to be not up to the mark. Something is lacking... which has resulted in corruption and consequently, public's faith in the judiciary is damaged," Live Law reported.
Supreme Court Launched A Probe
According to a report by India Today, the Supreme Court has initiated a probe regarding the matter. The apex court has sought a report from the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court regarding the matter.
However, NDTV quoted sources as saying that some members of the Collegium also believe that strict action is needed to prevent the reputation of the judiciary from getting tarnished, as this will seriously impact its ability to deliver justice to the people.
What Was The Case?
On March 14, during the Holi celebration, a fire incident took place. Family members reported the fire; emergency services were called, leading to police involvement. Amid this, a huge amount of unaccounted cash was recovered from Varma's house.
Varma was out of town at the time of the incident.
Who Is Yashwant Varma?
Justice Varma was born on January 6, 1969, in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh.
He obtained a B.Com degree from Hansraj College, University of Delhi. He received an LLB degree from Rewa University, Madhya Pradesh and thereafter registered as an advocate on August 8, 1992.
He was elevated as Additional Judge of the Allahabad High Court on 13 October 2014, took oath as a permanent Judge of that Court on 1 February 2016 and was transferred to the Delhi High Court on 11 October 2021.
As an advocate at the Allahabad High Court, he had a varied practice handling matters relating to constitutional, labour and industrial legislations, corporate laws, taxation and allied branches of law.
According to his details on the Delhi High Court website, he was also a special counsel at the Allahabad High Court from 2006 till his promotion.
Justice Yashwant Verma served as Chief Standing Counsel for Uttar Pradesh from 2012 to August 2013, after which he was designated as a senior advocate by the Court.
