New Delhi: India’s Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar Monday publicly called for the registration of a criminal case and probe into the alleged discovery of burnt cash at the house of Justice Yashwant Varma in March, while he was holding office in the Delhi High Court. Dhankhar said that the “system will get purified” and get a “nice makeover”, once the culprits are brought to book by a scientific and thorough investigation.
Speaking at a book launch event, Dhankhar said that several reputations have become fragile, following the revelation of burnt notes in the house of a sitting High Court judge. He emphasised that only an expeditious investigation can reveal the “money trail, its purpose, the bigger sharks behind it, and if it polluted the judicial system”.
The Vice President expressed surprise that there was no FIR in the matter two months after the alleged discovery of cash, and wondered why the criminal justice system was not operationalised like it would have been for other individuals.
He went a step ahead by questioning the in-house inquiry committee set up by the previous Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, pointing out that it had no constitutional basis. Justice Khanna had formed a panel of three high court judges to inquire into the incident. On 8 May, he had submitted the report to the government, along with his observation that further action should be initiated against Justice Varma under the Judges (Inquiry) Act.
VP Dhankhar took objection to the inquiry panel’s constitution, because it had no force of law. According to the Constitution, he said, the chairman of either the Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha can constitute a panel to probe allegations of misconduct against a sitting judge.
Dhankhar even advocated for a review of the 1991 Supreme Court judgment in the Justice Veeraswamy case, which had given rise to the in-house inquiry mechanism, saying that the verdict was then the need of the hour, for which he too had stood up.
But now there is a need to revisit it since it has “neutralised all salvos of accountability and transparency”, he said.
“Names are floating. Several reputations have become fragile. People think the system has really suffered something. It’s a great challenge. The system will get purified,” he remarked on the need to register an FIR.
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‘Concrete manifestation of what ails the system’
On Monday, Dhankhar released senior advocate Vijay Hansaria’s book, titled The Constitution We Adopted—a collection of constituent assembly speeches, which gives an insight into the actual Constitution designed by the parents of the Constitution.
While applauding Hansaria for the effort he made in presenting the original form of the Constitution, Dhankhar delved into the concept of rule of law and constitutional boundaries.
“…We cannot get away from the ground reality today. We celebrate his book release, but we are confronted with the jarring reality. Our judge’s residence in Lutyen’s Delhi had burnt notes, cash haul, there is no FIR till date,” he said.
“…Let this small incident that is agitating the minds of billions, let us give quietest to it by scientific, forensic, expert, thorough investigation that reveals everything and leaves nothing unrevealed. The truth needs to be laid bare…because this incident is a concrete manifestation of what ails the system at the moment,” he added.
Dhankhar also questioned the belated disclosure of the incident, a week after the top bosses in the Judiciary learnt about it. “Just imagine how many such other incidents may have taken place which we are not aware of,” he said, emphasising the need to implement a transparent and accountable mechanism to address corruption in the Judiciary.
The Vice President said that it was time the Supreme Court walked the talk by following its motto of delivering justice. “Truth has to triumph in this case. Nothing but absolute truth has to triumph in this case,” he asserted.
Transgression of integrity in the Judiciary, he added, impacts the common man and those who believe in rule of law. “Therefore, we have to be unsparing about it.”
On the inquiry panel set up on the administrative side by the CJI, Dhankhar said he was surprised that the committee, with no constitutional backing or legal sanctity, recovered electronic equipment from individuals. Calling it a serious issue, he said that the committee’s inquiry is “inconsequential” and a “waste of judicial time” as the report can be sent to anyone on the administrative side and is not legally binding.
“Now just imagine how much labour has gone to chief justices of two high courts. In one high court, the coverage area is of two states,” he said, wondering if the “country can afford to invest” so much time, on the administrative side, at the cost of judicial work of the high court.
According to him, a legitimate committee is one that is constituted only either by the Speaker or the Chairman, as the case may be when a requisite number of Members of Parliament come with a resolution to remove the judge.
Impressing on the concept of rule of law, Dhankhar said that there was no occasion to delay for a moment invoking the law in the said case. About the concepts of democracy, he said, all the organs of a State must listen to each other.
“And if one of them believes that its expression alone is right, then democracy is weakened and gets fragile. It’s crucial to understand the other point of view and remain accountable for its actions,” he added.
As far as Judiciary is concerned, he said, it is necessary to have a robust institution, as it is the safest guarantee for the citizens, and also for the survival of democracy.
He praised former CJI Khanna for setting “very high standards of accountability and transparency”. By putting all documents related to the preliminary inquiry against Justice Varma, Dhankhar said, Khanna acted beyond the expectations of many. He further hoped that the present incumbent, CJI B.R. Gavai would follow in the footsteps.
He, however, clarified that he was not casting aspersions on any particular person and that he valued the innocence of a person. But in national interest, he said, the rule of law must be one for all, and that it cannot be divided into two compartments—one for insiders and other for outsiders.
The Vice President also cautioned all organs of democracy against constitutional transgressions. “Democracy as a citadel captures its strength when intact, but suffers acute vulnerability when compromised,” he said, adding that it was a matter of deep concern that the “constitutional architecture is getting strained by the day and also fragile with infrequent incursions in the domain of each other”.
He clarified that he was not specifically speaking about the Judiciary, but also referring to the Executive, and to some extent the Legislature.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
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