Lawyer Calls Cash Row Judge "Varma", Chief Justice Asks "He's Your Friend?"

Chief Justice of India BR Gavai pulled up a lawyer in the Supreme Court today after he referred to Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma, who is being investigated after a massive cash recovery from his home, as just "Varma".

Advocate Mathews Nedumpara was urging the court for an urgent hearing on his petition seeking an FIR against Justice Varma, who hit headlines in March when a fire at his home led to a huge cash discovery.

Justice Varma was then a judge of the Delhi High Court and was later moved to the Allahabad High Court. Following the recovery, a Supreme Court inquiry panel found him guilty of misconduct and then Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna urged Parliament to initiate impeachment proceedings against the judge. The judge has challenged this and approached the Supreme Court.

Mr Nedumpara today sought urgent listing of his petition and said he had moved it for the third time. At one point, he referred to the judge as "Varma".

The Chief Justice shot back. "If you want me to dismiss now, I will dismiss it now! Is Justice Varma your friend? He is still a learned judge of the high court... how are you referring to him as 'Varma'?" Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, too, took exception to Mr Nedumpara's "Varma" reference and underlined that he was still a judge.

Mr Nedumpara's petition seeks directions to Delhi Police to register an FIR against Justice Varma and investigate the cash recovery. It says that recovery of currency notes on this scale is a cognizable offence punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the law against money laundering.

On March 14, firefighters and cops rushed to the judge's official residence after a fire call. There, they found a large amount of half-burnt currency notes in plastic bags. Mr Nedumpara's petition said police officers shot videos and photos at the spot, but did not register an FIR. This is because the K Veeraswamy vs Government of India judgment states that the Chief Justice of India's permission is necessary to register an FIR against a judge.

The lawyer's petition says the three-member inquiry committee formed by the Supreme Court is "unconstitutional" and interferes in the role of the police.

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