With just one month to retire, Calcutta High Court judge Justice CS Karnan became the first sitting judge of a superior court to be sentenced to jail for contempt of court.
The Bench restrained print, electronic media from publishing any statement made by Justice Karnan following its order. A seven-judge Bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday unanimously declared Karnan guilty of the contempt of the ‘gravest nature’ and punished him to six months in jail. The SC has directed DGP Kolkata Police to constitute a team to take him into custody. Justice Karnan flew to his hometown Chennai on Monday night and is reported to camping in a guest house there.
Justice Karnan is due to retire on June 11 this year. The SC order heralds an unceremonious end to his judicial career that began as an Additional Judge of Madras HC on March 31, 2009. The SC order came a day after Justice Karnan held seven Supreme Court judges, including the Chief Justice of India guilty under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and sentenced them to prison for five years.
The SC decided to take this unprecedented step after Justice Karnan refused to undertake a mental check up ordered by the Court and instead abused the judges for proceeding against him for being a Dalit.
Even in the past, he has abused several judges of High Courts and levelled unsubstantiated allegations of corruption against them.
On Tuesday, when the Bench of CJI JS Khehar, Justices Dipak Misra, J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B lokur, PC Ghose and Kurian Joseph assembled to decide the next course of action following Justice Karnan’s refusal to undertake a medical test, senior advocates appearing for the Centre, Madras High Court (the parent High Court of Justice Karnan), and Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) condemned Justice Karnan’s recent order and unequivocally held him guilty of contempt.
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Maninder Singh submitted that the judge’s conduct makes out for a clear case of contempt under Article 129 of Constitution. The SCBA president RS Suri supported this stand. Senior advocate KK Venugopal, who represented Madras High Court, agreed that contempt was made out against the judge but suggested the court act against him after his retirement.
“It will be a blemish on the system if a sitting judge of High Court is sent to jail,” he said.
Speaking for the Bench, the CJI said, “Contempt has no colour. It does not distinguish between a judge and any citizen. To distinguish him (Karnan) as a sitting judge we cannot do. What about the orders he has passed as a sitting judge. When you commit contempt, you come to court as any other citizen. There can’t be any differentiation on the ground that you are a sitting judge.”
Moreover, the Bench said the Medical Board had no ambiguity about his mental fitness which conclusively proved that he understands the effect of his actions.
After a long deliberation, the Bench said, “We are of the unanimous view that Justice Karnan has committed contempt of this Court, and of the judiciary and the judicial process of the gravest nature. We are satisfied in punishing him for contempt by sentencing him to prison for a period of six months. The sentence shall be executed forthwith.”