UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Om Birla reconstitutes probe panel against Justice Varma

Q1. Who presides over the three-member Judges Inquiry Committee, as reconstituted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla in 2026, examining the grounds for removal of Justice Yashwant Varma?

  • A. Justice Aravind Kumar, Judge, Supreme Court of India
  • B. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice, Bombay High Court
  • C. B.V. Acharya, Senior Advocate
  • D. Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, Chief Justice, Madras High Court

Q2. Under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, the third member of the inquiry committee—occupied in the Varma panel by Senior Advocate B.V. Acharya—must statutorily belong to which category?

  • A. A distinguished jurist
  • B. A retired judge of the Supreme Court
  • C. The serving Attorney General for India
  • D. A serving judge of a High Court

Q3. Consider the following statements comparing the committee reconstituted by Speaker Om Birla in 2026 with its original composition in the Justice Varma matter: 1. The reconstitution replaced the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court with the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. 2. The Supreme Court judge member, Justice Aravind Kumar, was retained from the original committee. 3. The reconstitution replaced the senior advocate member, B.V. Acharya, with a different jurist. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The reconstitution replaced the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court with the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.
  2. The Supreme Court judge member, Justice Aravind Kumar, was retained from the original committee.
  3. The reconstitution replaced the senior advocate member, B.V. Acharya, with a different jurist.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q4. Under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968—the statute under which the Varma inquiry committee was constituted—what is the minimum number of Lok Sabha members required to move a motion for the removal of a judge?

  • A. 50
  • B. 100
  • C. 150
  • D. 200

Q5. With reference to the Judges Inquiry Committee reconstituted by Speaker Om Birla in 2026 in the Justice Varma matter, consider the following: 1. Justice Aravind Kumar — Judge, Supreme Court of India 2. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar — Chief Justice, Bombay High Court 3. Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava — Chief Justice, Madras High Court 4. B.V. Acharya — Senior Advocate Which of the above is/are correctly identified as members of the reconstituted committee?

  1. Justice Aravind Kumar — Judge, Supreme Court of India
  2. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar — Chief Justice, Bombay High Court
  3. Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava — Chief Justice, Madras High Court
  4. B.V. Acharya — Senior Advocate
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4