In a massive hit to the higher judiciary’s image, the Supreme Court today, Friday, January 16, 2026, finally pulled the plug on Justice Yashwant Varma’s attempts to stall his own impeachment.1
The thing is, Justice Varma—the Allahabad High Court judge who became infamous after stacks of cash were found burning in his Delhi bungalow—was trying to argue that the Lok Sabha Speaker “unilaterally” set up an inquiry panel.2 Or nothing. Let’s be real, he was trying every legal loophole in the book to stop the Judges (Inquiry) Act from playing out. Those too. A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma didn’t buy it.3 They threw out his petition, basically saying the investigation into his “not confidence-inspiring conduct” must go on.4
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The “Burnt Cash” Log: Field Notes
It’s an ongoing situation where the judiciary is trying to scrub a very dark stain off its robes.
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The “Smoking Gun” (Literally): This all started in March 2025.5 Firefighters were called to Varma’s Lutyens’ Delhi residence for a “small fire.”6 The thing is, they didn’t find a kitchen fire; they found piles of currency notes being incinerated in a storeroom.7 Some reports say it was nearly ₹15 crore.8 And here’s the kicker—videos of the burning cash were recorded by a cop on the scene and sent straight to the CJI.
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The “XXX” Mystery: Varma tried to keep his name out of the headlines by filing his petition as ‘XXX’ vs Union of India.9 The thing is, when you’re a sitting High Court judge and the fire department finds millions in burning cash at your house, the secret doesn’t last long.
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The Legal Tug-of-War: His lawyer, Mukul Rohatgi, argued that because a removal motion was moved in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on the same day, the Speaker couldn’t just act alone.10 The thing is, the Rajya Sabha motion was rejected by the Deputy Chairman.11 The Supreme Court ruled today that since the Rajya Sabha motion “never legally existed,” Speaker Om Birla was perfectly fine to go ahead and set up the three-member probe panel.12
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The Panel of Heavyweights: The committee now has the green light to grill him. It includes Justice Aravind Kumar of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.13 They’ve already spoken to 55 witnesses. The thing is, they’ve already labeled his behavior “unnatural.”14
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The Case of the “Ash-Caked” Stash
| Key Event | Date | Outcome |
| The Incident | March 14, 2025 | Fire reveals piles of burning cash at Justice Varma’s residence. |
| In-House Probe | May 4, 2025 | SC internal panel finds him guilty of misconduct. |
| Impeachment Move | July 21, 2025 | 200+ MPs sign a motion for his removal in Parliament. |
| Speaker’s Panel | August 12, 2025 | Lok Sabha Speaker constitutes 3-member inquiry committee. |
| Supreme Court Final15 | Jan 16, 202616 | Petition dismissed; probe to proceed immediately.17 |
And Here’s the Kicker…
Justice Varma’s defense was that the storeroom was “accessible to everyone,” including the gardeners and CPWD staff.18 The thing is, the in-house panel noted that he didn’t even bother to check the damage when he landed in Delhi that evening.
It’s an ongoing situation where the next step is the Parliamentary Inquiry Report. The thing is, if they confirm the corruption, Varma will become only the third judge in Indian history to face a full impeachment vote in both houses of Parliament. Those too. The government is already signaling that they want this cleared up before the Budget session ends.
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End…
