Amid the ongoing cash row, Justice Yashwant Varma, who is currently undergoing an in-house inquiry over allegations of unaccounted cash discovered from his official residence in Delhi, today took oath as a judge of the Allahabad High Court.
Justice Varma is currently facing an in-house inquiry by a 3-judge panel constituted by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna over the cash row currencies at his official premises.
Citing court sources, the Times Of India reported that despite the official swearing-in, no judicial work would be assigned to him amid the ongoing inquiry.
Live Law reported that unlike the usual public oath-taking ceremonies which are generally attended by various dignitaries, Justice Varma took his oath in a private setting, within a chamber.
About The Cash Row
Justice Varma made headlines on March 21 following the news of a fire at his official residence in Delhi which eventually led to the discovery of stacks of semi-burnt cash currencies.
Later, the Supreme Court made the video of fire dousing and the report of the Delhi High Court Chief Justice and Justice Varma's response public on its official website, as per Live Law. However, Justice Varma has denied possession of cash and claimed it to be a conspiracy against him.
SC's Move On Cash Row
Taking cognisance of the development, on March 22, CJI Sanjiv Khanna constituted a 3-member committee to conduct an inquiry into the allegations against Justice Varma, as part of the in-house procedure.
On March 24, the Delhi High Court withdrew judicial work from Justice Varma in pursuance of directions from the Apex Court.
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) plea has been filed in the Allahabad High Court seeking a directive to the Chief Justice of the High Court to refrain from administering the oath of office to Judge Yashwant Varma.
Centre Orders Repatriation
According to Live Law, the Centre notified his repatriation from Delhi to the Allahabad High Court on March 28, based on the Supreme Court Collegium's recommendations made on March 24.
It is significant to note that the transfer order had come despite the protests of the Allahabad High Court Bar Association.
Justice Varma, who originally belonged to the Allahabad High Court, was transferred to the Delhi High Court in 2021.
Justice Varma Denies Allegations
Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma has denied all allegations regarding a pile of cash burnt at his residence. This comes after a video of a large sum of cash being burnt went viral on social media in relation to the cash row inquiry case.
As per reports, in a letter to Delhi High Court's Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, Justice Varma denied the allegations and called the claims "baseless" and "preposterous."
"I state unequivocally that no cash was ever placed in that storeroom either by me or any of my family members and strongly denounce the suggestion that the alleged cash belonged to us. The very idea or suggestion that this cash was kept or stored by us is totally preposterous," he wrote.
