A day after the Supreme Court made the unprecedented move of publically releasing a comprehensive report detailing allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court, following a fire incident at his residence on March 14 that resulted in the alleged discovery of unaccounted cash, videos are surfacing online of burnt currency notes that were found near the premises of the judge’s house.
Inderjeet, a sanitation worker involved in cleaning the area, reported finding burnt pieces of Rs 500 notes while collecting garbage nearby. He noted that similar findings had been made days prior but expressed uncertainty about how the fire started or where it originated.
“We work in this circle. We collect garbage from the roads. We were cleaning here 4-5 days back and collecting garbage when we found some small pieces of burnt Rs 500 notes. We found it that day. Now, we have found 1-2 pieces…We do not know where a fire broke out. All we do is collect garbage,” he said.
Another sanitation worker, Surender, said: “We work with these garbage vans, we collect garbage. It has been 4-5 days when we found burnt Rs 500 notes. We found some pieces even now…”
SC releases report
The report released by the SC revealed that four to five sacks of burnt currency notes were discovered in an outhouse used as a storeroom, raising serious concerns about the source of the cash found at the judge’s home.
Justice Varma, who was not present during the incident, has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, asserting that neither he nor his family ever stored cash in that room.
He described the allegations as a “conspiracy to frame and malign” him, expressing shock at the contents of a video released by the Supreme Court which depicted charred bundles of cash.
The inquiry report, made public late on March 22, included photographs and videos from the firefighting operation that took place after a short circuit ignited the fire.
The Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, indicated that there was no evidence of forced entry into the storeroom, suggesting that only individuals associated with Justice Varma had access to it.
In response to these developments, the Supreme Court has formed a three-member committee to conduct a deeper investigation into the matter.
The committee will explore the origins of the cash and assess any potential involvement from Justice Varma’s staff or other parties.
As this investigation unfolds, Justice Varma has been directed not to engage in judicial duties until further notice.
