For weeks, Calcutta High Court judge Justice CS Karnan has been in the news for a spate of unsavoury controversies. Now he’ll hog the limelight for being the first judge in the country to be examined for mental fitness.
Before proceeding with ongoing contempt case against Justice Karnan , the Supreme Court on Monday ordered his medical examination to ascertain whether he was in a position to defend him in any legal proceedings.
What prompted the court to take this unprecedented step was the receipt of an order passed by Justice Karnan directing all seven judges of Supreme Court hearing his case besides another judge to appear in contempt before him. Justice Karnan had even sought to impose travel restriction on the eight judges in order to secure their presence.
Chief Justice JS Khehar, heading the seven-judge Bench, remarked in a lighter vein, “He is expecting us there today. Possibly that is the reason he did not turn up.” But reviewing Justice Karnan’s Press briefings and the purported judicial order issued by him, the Bench prima facie concluded, “He (Justice Karnan) may not be in a fit medical condition to defend himself in the present proceedings. Therefore, we consider it appropriate, to require him to be medically examined, before proceeding further.”
Justice Karnan on Monday termed the SC’s order for conducting a medical examination on him as “ridiculous”, and instead ordered the Delhi Police to produce the seven SC judges before a psychiatric board.
“The said order is a ridiculous order without proper application of mind in following appropriate procedures as required...the seven accused judges have desperately adopted this ridiculous order, in order to escape the punishment leviable via the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (prevention of) atrocity act,” Karnan said in a press release.
Justice Karnan had acted in clear breach of the apex court’s February 8, 2017 order withdrawing all judicial and administrative work from him. “The nature of his orders is either judicial or administrative. They are in clear breach of our order and hence ex-facie contemptuous,” said the Bench, while directing the Director, Health Services of West Bengal to form a medical team of doctors from Pavlov Government Hospital, Kolkata to medically examine the judge on May 4.
The Bench, also comprising Justices Dipak Misra, J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, MB lokur, PC Ghose and Kurian Joseph, ordered the State DGP to provide police protection to the team, which has to submit its report to the SC on May 8. The report shall indicate whether Justice Karnan is in a “fit condition” to defend himself, the judges said, directing further listing of the case on May 9.
In order to ensure that Karnan did not mislead authorities by passing orders, the Bench restrained all authorities, courts, tribunals and commissions from taking cognizance of any orders issued by him pursuant to February 8, 2017.
The Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi did not support the SC’s decision to give more time to Justice Karnan, saying he was trying to bring disrepute to the judiciary in public mind. “He cares two hoots about the judges which is completely unacceptable. The recent order by him does not show he has lost his mental balance. This is a calculated approach and the judiciary must act against him now in contempt as judiciary cannot become a laughing stock,” the A-G submitted.
Senior advocate KK Venugopal, who appeared for Madras Public Service Commission, which is pursuing a separate case against Justice Karnan, wanted the matter to be taken after Justice Karnan retires in June.
The Bench said, “His retirement does not make the process infructuous. Anybody can play with us by making any remark and then feign mental imbalance… We, therefore, consider it appropriate, to require him to be medically examined, before proceeding further.”