Delhi High Court Judge Denies Allegations of Cash Recovery

Says Neither His Staff Nor Fire Services Crew Saw ‘Stacks of Cash’

March 24, 2025

Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court has strongly denied allegations that large amounts of burnt cash were discovered in a storeroom at his official residence following a fire on the night of March 14.

In a detailed six-page clarification addressed to Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, Justice Varma categorically stated that neither he nor his family had any connection to the alleged cash, as reported by The Print.

He said the storeroom, where the fire broke out, was separate from the main residence, left unlocked and accessible to anyone. He added that his staff, who were present at the scene, reported seeing no cash or currency in the storeroom, whether burnt or intact, at any point.

Justice Varma criticised media reports for inaccurate and defamatory coverage, accusing them of failing to verify facts before implicating him.

In his response, which was uploaded to the Supreme Court portal, he stated, “I state unequivocally that no cash was ever placed in that storeroom by me or any of my family members, and I strongly denounce the insinuation that the alleged cash belonged to us.” 

He further claimed that during an inspection of the site by Chief Justice Upadhyaya’s secretary on the night of the fire, no cash was found in the storeroom.

He also denied allegations that any remnants of cash were removed from the scene, adding that the gutted storeroom has been left untouched following instructions from Chief Justice Upadhyaya.

Justice Varma also addressed a video circulating in connection with the incident, which purportedly shows burnt cash being recovered from the storeroom. He stated that he first saw the video on 17 March, when he returned from Lucknow and met Chief Justice Upadhyaya. Justice Varma expressed his suspicion that the incident could be part of a conspiracy, referring to earlier “unfounded allegations” about his involvement in a cheating case that had surfaced on social media in December.

The incident has triggered a formal investigation by a three-member inquiry panel set up by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna.

The controversy stems from an incident on 14 March when a fire broke out in a storeroom at Justice Varma’s official residence on Tughlak Road. The fire was quickly extinguished, but allegations soon surfaced that large amounts of cash were recovered from the storeroom. Justice Varma and his wife were in Bhopal at the time of the incident.

While the Delhi Fire Services chief, Atul Garg, has denied that his personnel recovered or seized any cash, the video of the purported recovery was reportedly shared with Chief Justice Upadhyaya and later with the Supreme Court collegium.

Justice Varma’s judicial responsibilities have been withdrawn for the duration of the investigation, and he has been instructed not to delete or alter any data on his mobile devices, while his call records are being reviewed.

The video evidence of the alleged cash recovery led to discussions within the Supreme Court collegium, which initially proposed transferring Justice Varma to his parent court, the Allahabad High Court. However, some members of the collegium argued that transferring the judge alone was insufficient to address the gravity of the allegations, prompting CJI Khanna to establish the inquiry panel.

Justice Varma was appointed to the Allahabad High Court in 2014 and transferred to the Delhi High Court in 2021. Before his elevation to the bench, he served as a special counsel for the Allahabad High Court and standing counsel for the Uttar Pradesh government.