The flames at Justice Yashwant Varma’s Delhi residence may have died down, but the smoke hasn’t cleared. What started as a fire in a cluttered outhouse has spiraled into a full-blown controversy—allegations of hidden cash, viral videos, and a sitting judge fighting for his name.
Justice Varma has now broken his silence, in a detailed response to Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya. The heart of his defence? There was no cash—burnt or otherwise—at the scene, and what’s circulating now is a narrative stitched from assumptions and misrepresentations.
Here’s what the judge says, in his own words and spirit:
1. “I Saw No Cash. No One Did.”
The linchpin of Justice Varma’s rebuttal: he firmly denies ever seeing—let alone storing—currency in the room that caught fire. His daughter and elderly mother were home that night, but they too, he says, reported nothing unusual. Staff weren’t shown any recovered notes, police left without mentioning any seizure, and the judge himself only arrived the next evening.
“I stand by my consistent position: no sacks, no bundles, not even a scorched tenner was visible in that room.”
His version directly contradicts what’s seen in the now-infamous video—purportedly showing charred cash at the site—shared by the Delhi Police Commissioner with the Chief Justice. Justice Varma insists what’s seen in that footage doesn’t match reality.
2. “Ask the Fire Chief—Even He Didn’t See Any Notes”
Backing up his claims, Varma points to public statements made by the head of the fire services—who allegedly told media there was no cash visible when his team responded. His own house staff echo the same: no currency, no removal of any such thing.
The debris from the fire? Still there. Unmoved, unsorted. And very much devoid of money, according to the judge.
“Only debris and salvageable items were cleared. No burnt currency. That too remains untouched and is still in the house.”
3. “It Wasn’t Even My Room”
Justice Varma takes aim at what he calls media distortion—that the fire broke out inside his residence. Instead, he says it was an outhouse-like storage area near the staff quarters. Unlocked, accessible from the street, and regularly used to stash miscellaneous odds and ends.
Furniture, broken electronics, garden tools—not bundles of cash, he insists.
“The idea that anyone would stash cash in a room open to ‘all and sundry’ verges on absurdity.”
He says the structure isn’t even connected to the living quarters—it’s separated by a boundary wall.
4. “Even The Court’s Own Officer Found Nothing”
Varma underscores that a senior court official, the PPS to the Chief Justice, visited the site with him and made no mention of cash—burnt or otherwise. His report, submitted March 16, confirms this, Varma notes.
“When we inspected the gutted room together, there was no sign of currency. That’s documented.”
5. “This Isn’t About a Fire—It’s a Smear Campaign”
The judge connects the dots backward. In December 2024, social media lit up with old allegations tied to a CBI case from 2018. Now, with this fire and the sudden appearance of cash allegations, he says it all feels orchestrated.
“I was shocked by the video. It showed things not found at the site. This reeks of a conspiracy.”
He believes his name is being systematically tarnished and has even requested an enquiry into his judicial record to clear the air.
“Let my conduct as a judge be scrutinised. I’ve nothing to hide.”
The Road Ahead
While the Supreme Court has initiated an in-house inquiry and Justice Varma has been repatriated to the Allahabad High Court, this case has morphed into more than a fire investigation—it’s now a battle over truth, perception, and reputation.
Justice Varma’s stance is clear: he’s not backing down, and he wants the story rewritten—not just in the media, but in institutional memory.