A Chandigarh court on Saturday cleared former Punjab and Haryana High Court judge Justice Nirmal Yadav of all charges in a corruption case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2008 against her and others.

The Special Court of Additional Sessions Judge Alka Malik delivered the verdict today, acquitting all accused in the case, including Justice Nirmal Yadav, Ravinder Singh Bhasin, Rajiv Gupta, and Nirmal Singh.

The case against Justice Nirmal Yadav, who was then a sitting High Court judge and former judicial officer, stemmed from an incident in August 2008 when a bag containing ₹15 lakh was mistakenly delivered to the residence of Justice Nirmaljit Kaur, another sitting judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Justice Kaur’s peon reported the matter to the Chandigarh Police, leading to the registration of a First Information Report (FIR). The case was subsequently handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following orders from then Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator, General (Retd.) SF Rodrigues.

Initially, the CBI filed a closure report, which was rejected, prompting the agency to submit a charge sheet against the accused in 2011.

According to the prosecution, the money was sent by a clerk of former Haryana Additional Advocate General Sanjeev Bansal and was intended for Justice Yadav. However, due to the similarity in the names of the two judges, it was erroneously delivered to Justice Kaur’s residence.

In 2010, Justice Nirmal Yadav was transferred to the Uttarakhand High Court, where she retired a year later. The Special Court framed charges against five accused in 2014.  

One of the key accused, Sanjeev Bansal, passed away in December 2016 at Max Hospital in Mohali, leading to the proceedings against him being dropped in January 2017.  

In 2016, Justice Nirmaljit Kaur, in a statement given via video conference, recalled the incident that occurred on August 13, 2008—just 33 days after her elevation to the High Court.

"I vividly remember that I was munching an apple and my father was sitting with a little drink, as he did every day, when my Peon Amrik walked in and said in Punjabi: “Madam, Delhi ton kaagaz aye nein”. I said “Khol ke dekh”. While he was struggling to open the tape wrapped around the packet, I felt that they were not papers and I immediately said: “Jaldi Khol”. In the process, he tore open the packet and I saw that they were currency notes. So, without wasting a second, I said : “Pakro, kaun laike aya hain”," she said in her statement.

Minutes after the money was delivered, Sanjeev Bansal called Justice Nirmaljit Kaur, claiming that it had been sent by mistake and was actually intended for one Nirmal Singh. However, by that time, Justice Kaur had already informed the police.  

She then reached out to High Court Chief Justice TS Thakur, who had assumed office just two days earlier, as well as Justice Mehtab Singh Gill, another judge of the High Court.

The prosecution initially cited 84 witnesses, but only 69 were examined during the trial. In February this year, the Punjab and Haryana High Court allowed the CBI to re-examine 12 witnesses.  

The High Court also directed the CBI to complete the examination within four weeks and instructed the trial court to avoid unnecessary adjournments. This order came when the trial was nearing completion.  

Subsequently, the trial court closed the prosecution’s evidence on March 17. The statements of the accused were recorded by March 26, and final arguments were heard on March 27.