Storeroom where burnt cash was found under active control of Justice Varma and family: Panel
New Delhi, May 30 (PTI): A Supreme Court-appointed committee, which has indicted Allahabad High Court judge Yashwant Varma in a cash-discovery row, has said the access to the storeroom where burnt cash was found was under the "active control" of the judge and his family, sources said.
They said the panel has found some evidence that indicate that the burnt cash was removed from the storeroom on May 15 after a fire incident came to light.
Earlier this month, the then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna wrote to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides sharing with them the committee report, along with the response received from Justice Varma.
The sources said the panel, which considered evidence including electronic evidence, has opined in its report that the allegations are serious enough to commence proceedings for Justice Varma's removal.
The panel has analysed the evidence and recorded the statements of more than 50 people, including Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora and the Delhi Fire Services chief, who were among the first responders to the fire incident at Justice Varma's official Lutyen's Delhi residence at 11:35 pm on March 14.
Justice Varma was a judge of the Delhi High Court then.
The allegation was repeatedly denied by Justice Varma in his responses to the Delhi High Court chief justice and the Supreme Court-appointed panel.
The apex court administration recently rejected a plea seeking the committee report under the Right to Information Act.
The RTI application had also sought a disclosure of the communication between the then CJI and the president and the prime minister over the matter.
The in-house procedure entails that the CJI writes to the president and the prime minister for impeachment after the advice to the judge to resign is not complied with.
"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 copy of the three-member committee report dated May 3 along with the letter/response dated May 6 received from Justice Yashwant Varma," the apex court said in a statement on May 8.
The committee had confirmed the cash-discovery allegations against Justice Varma in its inquiry report, the sources had previously said.
The three-member panel comprised Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Sheel Nagu, Himachal Pradesh High Court Chief Justice G S Sandhawalia and Justice Anu Sivaraman of the Karnataka High Court. The report was finalised on May 3.
The sources had also said former CJI Khanna had nudged Justice Varma to step down in view of the critical findings in the report, which was forwarded to the judge for his response, in line with the principle of natural justice.
The controversy was raised following a news report in the cash-discovery row and had led to several steps, including a preliminary inquiry by Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya, judicial work being taken away from Justice Varma in the Delhi High Court and later, his transfer to the Allahabad High Court sans judicial work.
On March 24, the apex court collegium recommended the repatriation of Justice Varma to his parent, Allahabad High Court.
On March 28, the top court asked the chief justice of the Allahabad High Court not to assign any judicial work to Justice Varma for now.
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Here's how netizens, media outlets projected Ashwini Kumar's bomb threat as 'Lashkar-e-Jihadi'
Mumbai: Mumbai was thrown into panic late on Thursday night when police received a WhatsApp message warning of a large-scale terror attack during the Ganesh festival. The message, written in the name of a jihadi group called “Lashkar-e-Jihadi,” claimed that 14 Pakistani terrorists had entered Mumbai with 400 kilograms of RDX loaded in 34 vehicles.
It warned of blasts that could kill as many as one crore people. Authorities immediately declared a high alert, and the case was handed over to the Crime Branch while the Anti-Terrorism Squad and other security agencies were put on standby.
Within hours, the threat made national headlines. Television channels and online portals reported the possibility of a terror strike, repeatedly linking the message to Pakistan-based groups.
The incident was projected as yet another attempt to destabilize Mumbai, and the supposed involvement of a jihadi outfit quickly gained traction across the media. However, a swift investigation by Mumbai Police traced the origin of the message to a very different source.
By Saturday, police had tracked down and arrested Ashwin Kumar Supra, a 50-year-old astrologer and Vastu consultant living in Sector 79 of Noida. Originally from Patna, Kumar admitted during interrogation that he had sent the message using the name of his former friend Firoz. In 2023, Firoz had lodged a fraud case against him at Phulwari Sharif police station in Patna, leading to Kumar’s three-month imprisonment. Seeking revenge, Kumar attempted to frame Firoz by posing as a jihadi terrorist. Police recovered his mobile phone, SIM cards, and other digital devices used in the hoax.
When the threat first came to light, social media was flooded with heated reactions. Journalist @Manju_IBNews wrote, “Another election around the corner!” while user @kv_mcu posted an aggressive comment demanding to “ban Islam and burn the Quran,” calling for mass deportations and tying the incident to culture and religion. In response, @RIMMS51979 countered sharply, saying, “Caller Name is Ashvini kumar what will you burn now.” Another user, @Valkyrie00777, questioned the credibility of the threat, pointing to contradictions in the claim that 14 terrorists had entered India with 34 bombs and 400 kilograms of RDX. Meanwhile, @Liberal51601607 remarked, “Terrorists have no religion.. Anyone..?”
Fact-checkers also weighed in. @zoo_bear (Mohammed Zubair) accused NDTV of omitting crucial context, posting: “Adani's TV hasn't mentioned that the accused Ashwini Kumar sent the bomb threat message to Mumbai police in the name of his friend Firoz to frame him.” The fact-check website Aazad Fact Check (@AazadFactCheck) published a detailed rebuttal, saying the story had quickly evolved into a propaganda tool. It noted that the supposed intelligence about “human bombs in vehicles” was technically flawed and described the entire sequence as “a pure example of Indian narrative building before a false flag operation.”
Adani's TV hasn't mentioned that the accused Ashwini Kumar sent the bomb threat message to Mumbai police in the name of his friend Firoz to frame him. https://t.co/17nZxYOrql
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) September 6, 2025
After Ashwini Kumar’s arrest, the tone of the online conversation shifted sharply. Activist @ShabnamHashmi posted, “Ashwini Kumar 50 Year Old Astrologer from Noida has been arrested for sending these threats in the name of a Muslim. This is how Sangh sleeper cells are spreading hatred. Stop the Hate factory! Vote Out the Vote Chori Gang.” Journalist @indscribe (Shams Ur Rehman Alavi) observed that newspapers splashed the initial threat on front pages but buried the arrest details inside. “When the guy gets caught, the same newspapers don't publish his photo, relegate it to page 14 or reduce it to a single column… Interest gone after ‘name’ found,” he wrote.
Ashwini Kumar 50 Year Old Astrologer from Noida has been arrested for sending these threats in the name of a Muslim. This is how Sangh sleeper cells are spreading hatred
— Shabnam Hashmi (@ShabnamHashmi) September 6, 2025
Stop the Hate factory !
Vote Out the Vote Chori Gang pic.twitter.com/IzpLjWVJgu
Other users highlighted systemic and political angles. @shfique13 argued that there are now “two laws” in the country—one protecting those aligned with the government and another used to suppress truth-tellers. @SoodRajive claimed the episode was staged, alleging Kumar had been paid to frame a minority and calling it “a staged toolkit drama.” User @hussain2577 wrote sarcastically, “Such an innocent n bright person. Plzz grant him bail, Garland him, Give him BJP membership form.” Another account, @Sangliyana, remarked, “Risking his life just to frame a Muslim boy. This is what 11 years corrupting mind.” Finally, @rsbisht__ argued that Kumar’s only aim was to trap Firoz, linking it to what he described as rising hatred against Muslims in Uttar Pradesh under the Modi and Yogi administrations.
