New Delhi, May 26: The Supreme Court has refused to disclose the findings of an in-house committee that indicted Justice Yashwant Varma of the Allahabad High Court in connection with a recent cash recovery case.
The court's administration turned down a Right to Information (RTI) request seeking access to the panel's report, citing its confidential nature.
The RTI application had also sought copies of communications sent by then Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the matter. However, the court stated that releasing such documents could potentially violate parliamentary privileges.
Earlier this month, CJI Khanna had submitted the committee's findings, along with Justice Varma’s response, to the President and Prime Minister. The matter now rests with the executive and Parliament to decide on further action.
As per the judiciary’s in-house procedure, the Chief Justice writes to the President and Prime Minister to recommend impeachment proceedings if a judge declines to resign after being asked to step down.
On May 8, the Supreme Court confirmed: “The Chief Justice of India, in terms of the in-house procedure, has written to the President of India and the Prime Minister of India enclosing therewith a copy of the three-member committee report dated May 3, along with the letter/response dated May 6 received from Justice Yashwant Varma.”
