Vice President Dhankhar Demands Criminal Probe into Burnt Cash Case Involving Justice Yashwant Varma:

Suspense crime, Digital Desk : The Vice President questioned the legal standing of a three member internal committee headed by former Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna for investigating the peculiar burning of currency notes found in the residence of Yashwant Varma, former judge of Delhi High Court. The started-off argument went, the panel has no constitutional basis, only chair persons of Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha have the authority to form panels to investigate allegations against sitting judges.

Demand for FIR and transparent investigation

While addressing the gathering, Dhankhar called for the authorities to file an FIR for the case of burning cash in March and conduct an exhaustive investigation. Is it reasonable to presume that only a very skilled trained level of investigation could ascertain where the money was procured from, salary accounts of the cash, along with any further implications it might have for a court? He blames the law not having an FIR in place after two months has passed no matter the situation.

In-House Panel’s Report and Its Implications

On May 8, the internal panel composed of three High Court judges submitted their report to the government. Former CJI Khanna recommended additional action under the Judges (Inquiry) Act. Nonetheless, Dhankhar ignored their conclusions, contending that the report has no legal relevance and that it represents a squandering of judicial time.

Reconsideration of 1991 Veeraswamy Judgment

In addition, Dhankhar argued for evaluating the Supreme Court’s 1991 ruling on the case of Justice K Veeraswami, which established an in-house inquiry mechanism for judges. While accepting that the judgment served its purpose during the time it was passed, he now argues that it opens the avenue to diminish accountability within the judiciary.

Call for Judicial Integrity and Accountability

Citing grave concern for the reputation of the judiciary, Dhankhar emphasized that they have clearly lost the public’s confidence. He called upon the Supreme Court to defend its own principles and to be committed to unearthing the full truth. He claimed this case points to deeper problems and underscored that judicial time and effort should never be spent on administrative inquiries of no legal consequence.