‘Unified Stand Of Parliament': Kiren Rijiju On Impeachment Motion Against Justice Varma
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday said that the potential impeachment of Justice Yashwant Varma of Allahabad High Court, who was indicted by a Supreme Court-appointed probe panel after the discovery of a huge amount of burnt cash from his official residence in the national capital, is a collective initiative of the MPs of all political parties, and not just the government.
'I have spoken to all the senior leaders of different political parties. I will also get in touch with some of the single-MP parties because I do not want to leave out any member. So it becomes a unified stand of the Parliament of India," Rijiju said in an interview with news agency PTI.
He further said that corruption in the judiciary is an extremely sensitive and serious matter and that's why members of Parliament cutting across party lines are in favour of moving a motion to remove Justice Varma.
'Corruption in the judiciary is an extremely sensitive and serious matter, because the judiciary is where people get justice. If there is corruption in the judiciary, it is a serious concern for everybody. That is why the motion for the removal of Justice Yashwant Varma is to be signed by all the political parties," he said.
Rijiju further said that he is happy that the principal opposition party, Congress, has understood the severity of the matter and agreed to be on board on the issue.
'When it comes to corruption in the judiciary, we have to stand together. There cannot be any partisan attitude and it should not be made a political issue," Rijiju said.
The Congress has said that all its MPs will support the motion against Justice Varma.
Strategy Meeting Ahead Of Session
Earlier today, union ministers Amit Shah, Piyush Goyal, Kiren Rijiju, ML Khattar, JP Nadda, L Murugan, Arjun Ram Meghwal and CR Paatil held a strategy meeting at the residence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to discuss several issues pertaining to the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament.
Law Minister On Impeachment Motion
Earlier today, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said that Justice Varma is entitled to challenge the process in court. He noted that a Supreme Court-led committee formed by the then Chief Justice submitted its findings to the Prime Minister and the President. However, he stressed that proceedings in Parliament are separate and independent from legal proceedings in court.
Regarding the motion expected to be tabled in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament, Meghwal reiterated that the government has no role in this process. 'Under the Constitution, MPs can initiate a motion to remove a judge on grounds of proven misconduct or corruption, requiring the support of at least 100 Lok Sabha MPs or 50 Rajya Sabha MPs. This process is entirely within their parliamentary privilege," he said.
Impeachment Motion To be Introduced In Monsoon Session
Government sources revealed that the impeachment motion, referred to as a 'removal motion," has already garnered over 100 signatures from members of the ruling BJP and its allies. Opposition members are also expected to submit their signatures shortly.
Once the motion is formally submitted, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha will decide whether to admit it. If admitted, a three-member committee will be formed, comprising a sitting Supreme Court judge, a High Court judge, and a distinguished jurist. This committee will investigate the charges against Justice Verma and submit a report to Parliament.
'So the three-month-period requirement will have to be fulfilled. And after that the inquiry report will be tabled in Parliament and a discussion held in both Houses," Rijiju said.
Justice Varma Reaches Supreme Court
Meanwhile, Justice Varma has approached the Supreme Court to challenge the findings of the in-house inquiry panel that recommended initiating impeachment proceedings against him.
According to the petition filed by Justice Varma, only Parliament has the authority to remove a judge, via a special majority and due process under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968.
In his plea, Justice Varma termed his removal as unconstitutional and violative of judicial independence. He also raised serious constitutional objections to the in-house inquiry procedure invoked in his case.
What's The Row?
Justice Varma is facing allegations of corruption after the cash discovery in March, when he was a judge at the Delhi High Court. However, he has claimed ignorance about the cash.
After the controversy, Justice Varma was transferred to the Allahabad High Court, his parent High Court.
After the cash discovery incident, the Supreme Court had set up a three-member committee of Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana, Justice GS Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh and Justice Anu Sivaraman, Judge of the High Court of Karnataka, to look into the allegations against Justice Varma.
While the preliminary report of the Delhi High Court Chief Justice and the response of Justice Varma, along with the photos and videos taken by the Delhi Police, were publicised by uploading them on the Supreme Court's website, the final iquiry report, submitted to the Chief Justice of India on May 4, has not been officially disclosed yet.
Then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna had written to the president and the prime minister to remove Justice Varma, mired in the cash discovery row.
Justice Khanna had prodded Varma to resign but he had refused, sources had earlier said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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Shobhit Gupta
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben...Read More
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First Published:
July 18, 2025, 19:00 IST
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