In an unprecedented move, 145 Members of Parliament from both ruling and opposition parties have jointly signed an impeachment notice against Justice Yashwant Varma. The notice was submitted to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday.
The judge is under scrutiny following the alleged recovery of cash from his official Delhi residence in March. Notable signatories to the motion include Rahul Gandhi, Anurag Thakur, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, P.P. Chaudhary, Supriya Sule, and K.C. Venugopal.
The impeachment notice has been filed under Articles 217 and 218 of the Constitution. Political parties backing the motion include the BJP, Congress, TDP, JD(U), JD(S), Janasena Party, AGP, Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), NCP, and CPI(M), among others.
This could become the first instance in independent India where a sitting High Court judge faces parliamentary investigation for impeachment under Articles 124, 217, and 218.
Article 217 mandates that a High Court judge can be removed only on grounds of proven misbehavior or incapacity, requiring a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament. Article 124(4) elaborates the removal process, which begins with an address by both Houses to the President.
To initiate the process, at least 50 Rajya Sabha MPs or 100 Lok Sabha MPs must sign the motion. The current notice surpasses that threshold, marking a significant development.
Though impeachment proceedings have been attempted five times in India&rsquo;s history, no judge has ever been removed. The most recent case was in 2018, involving former Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.
Justice Varma came under fire after burnt currency notes were allegedly found in an outhouse of his official Delhi residence on March 15. While the incident raised serious concerns about corruption within the judiciary, Justice Varma is now transferred to the Allahabad High Court and has denied all allegations, calling them baseless and &ldquo;preposterous.&rdquo; [Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by the Benefit News editorial team and is published directly from the IANS news feed]

Justice Varma under fire as cash row triggers rare impeachment move by 145 MPs

145 MPs Sign Impeachment Notice Against HC Judge

Justice Varma under fire as cash row triggers rare impeachment move by 145 MPs

July 21, 2025 | 23:36 IST