The Supreme Court’s timely three-member judicial enquiry into corruption allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma is a welcome initial move. It has become both the talk of the town and of the gown. Everyone agrees that releasing all the details of the allegations on the website of the Supreme Court is a big and bold move by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and the Supreme Court Collegium. Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, has lauded the CJI “for steps in the right direction” in publishing the reports related to the in-house procedure against Justice Varma over the alleged discovery of cash at his official premises. Justices Sheel Nagu (of the Punjab and Haryana HC), G S Sandhawalia (of the Himachal Pradesh HC) and Anu Sivaraman (of the Karnataka HC) have commenced their in-house enquiry.

At the outset, it needs to be acknowledged that ours is an adversarial justice system, in which no person can be held guilty unless so decreed by a competent forum of law. Justice Varma has denied all wrongdoing and has suggested that there is a deep “conspiracy” against him. The presumption of innocence is a cornerstone of the administration of justice, and fair trial is a fundamental right of all citizens accused of a crime. It would be misleading and erroneous to regard the concerned judge as “guilty”, no matter how strong the prima facie case against him may appear, and regardless of the mass media and public perceptions. Perhaps, at an appropriate stage in the proceedings, Justice Varma may lay bare the details........

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