No Prejudice Caused To Justice Yashwant Varma: Centre’s Reply In SC In Cash Haul Row

Last Updated:January 07, 2026, 12:15 IST

The affidavit also stated that the Supreme Court can’t question the Speaker’s decision to form a committee as they are “proceedings in Parliament”

Justice Yashwant Varma's bungalow (right) where the cash was recovered. (File)

Justice Yashwant Varma’s petition challenging the impeachment motion in connection with the cash haul case was built on incorrect factual foundation, the Lok Sabha Secretary General has told the Supreme Court in its reply, which was exclusively accessed by CNN-News18.

“…No prejudice was caused to Justice Varma by constitution of the committee," stated the reply to the SC.

The affidavit also stated that the Supreme Court can’t question the Speaker’s decision to form a committee as they are “proceedings in Parliament". “Section 3 of the Judges Inquiry Act only applies when the motion is admitted in both the houses," it stated.

“When motion is moved in both houses on the same day, both houses need to admit the motion. If motions are not admitted by both houses when moved on the same day, a committee can’t be formed. The committee was formed by the Speaker, it is not a joint committee," Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Varma, said.

The affidavit highlighted that no MP has challenged the Deputy Chairman’s August 11, 2025 order refusing to admit the Rajya Sabha motion, claiming that decision has attained finality.

The reply states that the Rajya Sabha motion by 62 MPs was never admitted; Deputy Chairman, acting as Chairman, rejected it by a written order on August 11, 2025, leaving only the Lok Sabha motion valid.

The reply rejects the judge’s allegation that the Speaker relied on the CJI’s in house panel report, asserting MPs independently formed an opinion and the Speaker only recorded the motion’s contents.

Varma’s defence

Rohatgi said, “This matter comes after notice. The Lok Sabha has filed a reply, the Rajya Sabha hasn’t, they have sent us a letter… they want to file a reply so we can proceed."

“When a motion is moved in both houses on the same day, both houses need to admit the motion. If motions are not admitted by both houses when moved on the same day, a committee can’t be formed. The committee was formed by the Speaker, it is not a joint committee," said Rohatgi.

“The proviso contemplates one situation — if the motions are moved on the same day, then in that situation alone a committee is formed only if they are admitted and both will decided and have a joint committee. In my case, one motion was rejected. No committee could have been formed, as one house rejected, and since both houses did not admit the motion," said Rohatgi.

The Justice Varma cash haul row

On March 14, 2025, a fire broke out in a storeroom at Justice Varma’s official Delhi residence. Fire and police personnel reportedly found half burnt stacks of Rs 500 notes at the scene, captured on video and authenticated afterward. The impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma was initiated in Parliament on July 21, 2025. The judge had challenged it in the SC.

A Supreme Court-appointed three-judge in-house panel, after examining 55 witnesses over ten days, concluded that Justice Varma and/or his family had covert or active control over the storeroom. The panel noted the cash was removed in the early hours of March 15, implicating his staff in the act.

Justice Varma denied any involvement, claimed the storeroom was a common area accessible to staff, characterised the allegations as a conspiracy, and criticised procedural irregularities in the inquiry. The panel deemed the misconduct grave enough to warrant impeachment. Then CJI Sanjiv Khanna had forwarded the recommendation to the President and Prime Minister.

Justice Varma moved the Supreme Court seeking to quash the inquiry report, labelling the process unconstitutional and procedurally flawed. On August 7, the Supreme Court rejected his petition, upholding the inquiry’s findings and emphasizing that Justice Varma’s conduct “did not inspire confidence," effectively supporting the removal recommendation.

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