Justice Varma Cash Row: Allahabad High Court judge Yashwant Varma submitted his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu, rendering the impeachment proceedings against him as infructuous. He was under fire after wads of burnt currency notes were recovered from his residence in New Delhi last year. 57-year-old Justice Varma expressed his "deep anguish" in his letter to the President, Droupadi Murmu, on April 9.

"Your Excellency, while I do not propose to burden your august office with the reasons which have constrained me to submit this missive, it is with deep anguish that I hereby tender my resignation from the office of Judge of the Hon'ble High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, with immediate effect. It has been an honour to serve in this office," the resignation letter sent to the President read.

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What Is The Cash Row?

The purported discovery of a huge stash of cash took place after a fire broke out at Lutyens' Delhi residence of Justice Varma, then a Delhi High Court judge, at around 11:35 pm on the night of Holi on March 14, 2025, prompting the fire department personnel to rush to the spot and douse the flames. In a letter sent to the President on April 9, the 57-year-old Justice Varma said he was tendering his resignation with "deep anguish" and it was an honour to serve the office.

What Will Happen To His Impeachment Proceedings In Parliament?

The pending impeachment proceedings, intended to remove Varma from his office, became infructuous due to his resignation. Consequently, a three-member inquiry committee comprising Supreme Court judge Justice Aravind Kumar, Madras High Court Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and senior advocate B V Acharya was conducting an inquiry, a condition precedent, before an impeachment motion. Justice Varma's case saw many twists and turns after he refused to heed to the advice of then CJI Sanjiv Khanna to resign following two damning reports of judges.

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Left with no option, Justice Khanna wrote to the President to proceed further to impeach Justice Varma. He was later repatriated from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High. The top court on January 16 had dismissed Varma's plea challenging the Lok Sabha Speaker's decision to admit an impeachment motion and the validity of a panel set up to inquire corruption charges against him, saying a provision in law cannot be used as a weapon to scuttle parliamentary proceedings.

(With Agencies Inputs)

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