'Found burnt Rs 500 notes': In-house committee to probe allegations of cash hoarding against Justice Varma

Delhi: While Delhi high court judge Justice Yashwant Varma is under investigation for allegedly recovered cash from his official residence, a video of cash discovered among charred debris near his house has raised speculation. A charred currency note is visible among the debris in a video handed over to the sanitation workers after they claimed that the rubble had Rs 500 notes.

Sanitation workers found burnt cash

A sanitation worker, informed media,"We work in this circle. We pick up garbage from the roads. We were sweeping here 4-5 days ago and picking up garbage when we saw some burnt pieces of Rs 500 notes. We saw it that day. Now, we have seen 1-2 pieces.We do not know where a fire erupted. All we do is pick up garbage."

#WATCH | Delhi: Burnt debris seen near the residence of Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma. pic.twitter.com/PTI4vCVXY5

— ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2025

Justice Varma rejects charges

Surender, who is another sanitation official, claimed,"We work with these garbage trucks, we pick up garbage. It has been 4-5 days when we discovered burnt Rs 500 notes. We discovered some shreds even now." Justice Varma turns down cash connection

#WATCH | Delhi: Burnt debris seen near the residence of Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma. pic.twitter.com/iwpMIcJYi8

— ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2025

Justice Yashwant Varma wrote to the Delhi high court's Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya raising the matter as per an report, trying to protect his integrity against what he described as baseless claims.  

Inquiry report and formation of committee

For a judge, reputation and character are everything. Unfortunately, mine have been seriously besmirched and irreparably harmed by unfounded allegations constructed on unsubstantiated innuendos and the unjustified presumption that the cash said to have been found during the fire was mine," he told."I vehemently deny the insinuation that we withdrew currency from the storeroom.

Inquiry and investigation

We were neither exhibited nor provided with any sacks of incinerated currency. The few pieces of debris retrieved during the accident were in a specific section of the home, and no traces of any currency," he further stated. On Saturday night, the Supreme Court uploaded on its website an in-house inquiry report, including photos and videos, into the alleged discovery of a huge stash of cash at the residence of Justice Yashwant Varma.

Following the suggestion in the 25-page report, Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna set up an in-house committee to carry out an inquiry and directed Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya not to allot any judicial work to Justice Varma according to the report