Lok Sabha Forms 3-Member Panel To Review Justice Yashwant Varma Impeachment Proposal

New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday announced the formation of a three-member inquiry committee to examine the impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma, following the discovery of a large stash of unaccounted cash at his residence.

The committee comprises Supreme Court judge Justice Arvind Kumar, Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Justice Maninder Mohan Srivastava, and senior advocate B.V. Acharya from the Karnataka High Court. The panel has been tasked with conducting a thorough investigation and submitting its findings "as early as possible," Birla said.

The Speaker confirmed that the committee was set up after receiving a motion signed by 146 Members of Parliament seeking Justice Varma’s removal. “The proposal will remain pending until the inquiry committee submits its report,” he added.

The impeachment procedure against a sitting judge is governed by Article 124(4) of the Constitution. According to the laid-down process, once the inquiry committee submits its findings, the report will be placed before the House for further action.

The committee holds the authority to gather evidence and cross-examine witnesses during its inquiry. Should the committee find Justice Varma guilty of misconduct, the motion for his removal will be debated and voted on in the Lok Sabha. If passed, it will then be sent to the Rajya Sabha for a similar process.

This latest move follows the Supreme Court’s recent dismissal of Justice Varma’s plea challenging an earlier in-house inquiry report and the Chief Justice of India’s recommendation to the President for his removal.

With both the ruling coalition and the opposition reportedly in agreement on pursuing the impeachment, the process is expected to proceed without major hurdles.