Lok Sabha Speaker Defends Impeachment Inquiry of Justice Varma, Citing Rajya Sabha's 'Defective' Motion
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The Lok Sabha Speaker's office has submitted a response to the Supreme Court, stating that the impeachment motion against Allahabad High Court Judge Justice Yashwant Varma was never admitted in the Rajya Sabha due to being 'defective'. This development comes as the top court examines the plea of Justice Varma challenging the Speaker's decision to proceed with the inquiry. According to the Lok Sabha Speaker's office, a communication was sent to the Lok Sabha after the motion was presented in the Rajya Sabha, claiming it was defective and never admitted. Acting on this information, the Speaker admitted the motion on August 11 and proceeded with an inquiry committee headed by a Supreme Court judge. The Lok Sabha Secretary General, Utpal Kumar Singh, stated in the response that no scrutiny of the motion was done, and no decision on admission was taken by the Rajya Sabha Chairman. The motion was signed by over 50 members, but the Lok Sabha Speaker's office argues that the Rajya Sabha's decision to reject the motion is final. The Supreme Court bench, led by Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chadra Sharma, expressed skepticism about Justice Varma's argument, stating that the proviso to section 3(2) of the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, does not bar the Lok Sabha from constituting a committee if one House rejects the motion. The court also observed that the Rajya Sabha Secretary General's note stating defects in the motion seems to have entered into the merits of the case, and the petitioner should be entitled to a copy of the same. The court has posted the matter for Thursday to enable the supply of required documents. The Lok Sabha Secretary General has urged the court not to interfere with the ongoing removal proceedings against Justice Varma, citing the bar under Article 122 of the Constitution. The committee constituted by the Lok Sabha Speaker has already issued a notice to Justice Varma and asked him to submit his statement in defense of the charges by January 12, 2026, and to physically appear on January 24.
