A day after holding a key all-party meeting on the issue of Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Wednesday that the Executive, Legislature, and Judiciary are not pitted against each other, but all the institutions in the country have to function in tandem.

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Mr Dhankhar said, ”I need to indicate to the House that we yesterday had a very fruitful interaction on the issue that is agitating minds of the public. There was a gracious presence of leaders of political parties, including the Leader of the House and Leader of the Opposition. Without going into the details, the deliberations were consensual, reflecting cooperation, concern, and the issue is not between institutions inter se.”

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”It is not that the Executive, Legislature, or Judiciary are pitted against each other. All the institutions in the country have to function in tandem, in togetherness and also there are checks and balances which are well meant,” he pointed out.

A fire had broken out at Justice Yashwant Varma’s official residence in Delhi on 14 March. Wads of notes were found at his residence during the firefighting operation.

An all-party meeting on the issue was held in Parliament under the chairmanship of Rajya Sabha Chairman Dhankhar on Tuesday. Leader of the House JP Nadda and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge were present in the meeting.

Chairman Dhankhar said the leaders – of the House and the Opposition – will have wider consultations amongst all concerned in their respective parties and then meet him. ”It has been given by both the leader of the House and the leader of the Opposition that after having wider consultations amongst all concerned in their respective parties and otherwise, they would come to the Chairman for further deliberations. That was the conclusion after both – the leader of the House and the leader of the Opposition – shared their thoughts along with others,” he said.

In the meeting yesterday, floor leaders from the DMK, BJD, BRS, CPM, UBT, AGP, TMC, Congress, and BJP were present. According to sources, the discussion focused on key judicial matters. Among those present were Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.

The National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act was struck down by the Supreme Court despite being passed by Parliament and 16 states in 2015. According to sources, the Modi government is exploring the revival of the NJAC.

Yesterday, Mr Dhankhar said, ”There is no constitutional provision for review or appeal of a constitutional amendment. If there is legislation in the country by parliament or state, judicial review can take place…., whether there is conformity with constitutional provisions. ”Now, before the nation, there are two situations, one, what emanated from the Indian Parliament, duly endorsed by State Legislatures, sanctified by the Hon’ble President by appending signatures under Article 111, and second, is a judicial order.”

”Now, we are at a crossroads. I strongly urge members to reflect. There can be no breach by any institution of what emanates from Parliament, endorsed by the legislature. And that should again, I reiterate, be the mechanism holding the field. It is time for us, having seen such an extraordinarily painful scenario……” he added.

He expressed the confidence that they would find a way out, because the legislature and judiciary perform optimally when they perform best in their respective realm with expedition.

Mr Dhankhar held a meeting with Mr Nadda and Mr Kharge also on Monday and expressed dismay at the incident of a large amount of cash allegedly being found at the home of Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court. He also welcomed Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna’s decision to put the material related to the alleged recovery of cash at home in the public domain. He said that Parliament should await the CJI-appointed inquiry committee’s findings.