Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court has been transferred to the Allahabad High Court allegedly following an "adverse report" against him after reports emerged that a huge pile of cash was found at his residence.

Advertisment

The decision to move Justice Varma was taken by the Supreme Court Collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna.

In a statement quoted by ANI, the top court said that the proposal for the transfer of Justice Varma to the Allahabad high court was “independent and separate from the In-house enquiry procedure”

"There is misinformation and rumours being spread with regard to the incident at the residence of Mr. Justice Yashwant Varma...The proposal for transfer of Mr. Justice Yashwant Varma, who is the second senior most Judge in the Delhi High Court and a member of the Collegium, to his parent High Court i.e. the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, where he will be ninth in seniority, is independent and separate from the In-house enquiry procedure," the statement said

Advertisment

The proposal was examined by the Collegium comprising of the Chief Justice of India and four senior most Judges of the Supreme Court on 20th March 2025, and thereafter letters were written to the consultee Judges of the Supreme Court, the Chief Justices of the High Courts concerned and Mr. Justice Yashwant Varma. Responses received will be examined and, thereupon, the Collegium will pass a resolution," the apex court said.

It further said that upon receiving information, the Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya commenced an in-house enquiry procedure collecting evidence and information. Delhi HC Chief Justice, who had commenced the enquiry prior to the March 20 collegium meeting, would submit a report to Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna today itself, the statement added.

Following its examination, the court would proceed for "further and necessary" action.

Advertisment

Also read: Massive cash pile found in Delhi HC judge's house after fire breaks out, Justice Yashwant Varma transferred

Who is Justice Yashwant Varma?

Justice Varma has been serving as a judge in the Delhi High Court since October 2021.

Born on 6 January 1969 in Allahabad, he completed his BCom (Hons) at Hansraj College, University of Delhi, before earning his law degree from Rewa University in Madhya Pradesh.

He began his legal career in the Allahabad High Court, enrolling as an advocate on 8 August 1992. Over the years, he handled a broad spectrum of legal matters, including constitutional issues, labour and industrial law, corporate matters, and taxation.

Also read: US federal judge suspends ban on transgender people in military, says Trump ban 'soaked in animus'

According to his official profile on the Delhi High Court’s website, he was appointed as Special Counsel for the Allahabad High Court in 2006.

From 2012 to August 2013, he served as the Chief Standing Counsel for the State of Uttar Pradesh and was later designated a Senior Advocate by the court.

He was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Allahabad High Court on 13 October 2014 and became a permanent judge on 1 February 2016. He was transferred to the Delhi High Court on 11 October 2021.

Also read: ‘Self-pleasure not forbidden fruit’: Indian court rules wife masturbating, watching porn not grounds for divorce

What happened?

The present controversy broke out during the Holi break, when a large sum of unaccounted cash, reported to be ₹15 crore, was discovered at Justice Varma's Delhi residence. Firefighters who were called to extinguish a blaze at the property are said to have found the money.

Following the incident, the Supreme Court Collegium decided to transfer Justice Varma back to the Allahabad High Court, which is his parent court.

Justice Varma has not issued any statement in response and has not presided over the court since the incident. His staff informed news agency PTI that he is "on leave."

The matter was brought up in court by senior advocate Arun Bhardwaj, who urged for steps to be taken to prevent such incidents in the future.

Also read: ‘Not an appropriate response’: US Chief Justice rebukes Trump’s call to impeach ‘lunatic’ judge James Boasberg

"Today's incident has pained many of us. Please take some steps on the administrative side so these incidents do not happen in future and the judicial system is maintained..." he said.

"Yes, everyone has been shaken and demoralised," Delhi High Court Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya responded.

(With inputs from agencies)