The three-member committee of judges probing the discovery of cash at Justice Yashwant Varma’s residence recorded the statements of Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora for around two hours and Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), New Delhi district, Devesh Kumar Mahala for around four hours on Friday at the Haryana state guest house in Chanakyapuri, according to a source. Arora appeared before the panel formed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna at around 5.30 pm and came out at around 7.30 pm, the source said. “Before recording his statement, the panel recorded the statement of DCP Mahala, who came at around 3 pm and left around 7.30 pm. The panel has also recorded the statement of Additional DCP (New Delhi district) and ACP (Chanakyapuri),” the source added. A fire at Justice Varma’s residence on March 14 had sparked a controversy after wads of burnt currency were allegedly found at his home. On Wednesday, three domestic helps of Justice Varma appeared before the panel and recorded their statements. So far, the panel has recorded the statements of all five police personnel who were among the first responders to the fire at Justice Varma’s residence, Delhi Fire Services chief Atul Garg, three firefighters, and three security personnel of the judge. Following the directions of the panel, DCP Mahla sealed the storeroom where the cash was discovered after the fire. “The Delhi Police has submitted to Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya details of security personnel stationed at Justice Varma’s residence for the last six months, his call detail records for the same period and Internet Protocol Detail Record (IPDR) for the same period. The Chief Justice’s office had written to the police chief seeking these details following the CJI’s directions,” the source said. Narrating what transpired after the fire — which was reported by Justice Varma’s personal assistant (PA) at 11.30 pm on March 14 and put out by midnight — a source said, “Once the blaze was extinguished, the judge’s PA asked the five police personnel who had arrived at the spot to leave and return in the morning.” Justice Varma was away with his wife at the time of the blaze, which broke out in a storeroom attached to his residence. “At 8 am on March 15, the additional DCP (New Delhi district) presented the morning diary — a summary of key developments from the area over the last 24 hours — to his seniors. The morning diary included details of the fire. This was then conveyed to the police chief Arora, who was also shown videos captured after the blaze, who in turn reported the matter to his higher-ups at the Centre before alerting Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya about the development at around 4.50 pm,” the source said.
