Former Madras High Court Justice CS Karnan, who became the first sitting High Court judge to be sentenced to imprisonment for contempt of court, passed away on Friday, The Hindu reported. He was 71.
According to sources, Justice Karnan was living in Chennai and was recently admitted to a hospital following health complications. He passed away on Friday morning after failing to respond to treatment.
Born in 1955 in Karnatham village in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore district, Justice Karnan was the second of eight children born to Swaminathan and Kamalam. His birth name was Karunanidhi, which he changed to Karnan in 1991 at the request of his wife Saraswathi.
He graduated from Madras Law College in 1983 and subsequently practised as an advocate before being appointed a judge of the Madras High Court in March 2009.
Justice Karnan, whose judicial career was marked by a series of confrontations with fellow judges and the Supreme Court, was appointed an additional judge of the Madras High Court in March 2009. He became a permanent judge in March 2011.
His tenure at the Madras High Court was marked by repeated allegations of caste discrimination and corruption against fellow judges.
In November 2011, he accused fellow judges of harassing him because he was a Dalit. He subsequently levelled similar allegations against then Madras High Court Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul.
In 2014, Justice Karnan entered a courtroom while proceedings were underway and objected to the names proposed for elevation to the High Court.
He was transferred to the Calcutta High Court in 2016. However, the transfer itself became controversial after he purported to stay the order transferring him.
The confrontation escalated in January 2017 when Justice Karnan wrote to the Prime Minister, accusing several sitting and retired judges of corruption.
The Supreme Court subsequently initiated suo motu contempt of court proceedings against him.
During the proceedings, Justice Karnan purported to pass orders against Supreme Court judges, including directions imposing imprisonment and fines.
On May 9, 2017, a seven-judge Bench headed by then Chief Justice of India JS Khehar held him guilty of contempt and sentenced him to six months' imprisonment.
The decision marked the first time a sitting High Court judge had been sentenced to imprisonment for contempt of court.
Justice Karnan remained untraceable after the order and retired from judicial service on June 12, 2017. He was eventually arrested from Coimbatore later that month.
He served the six-month sentence and was released from prison in December 2017.
After his release, Justice Karnan continued to remain in the public eye. In May 2018, he launched a political party and announced plans to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
In December 2020, he was arrested by Chennai Police over videos containing derogatory remarks against judges and women judicial officers.
The Madras High Court initially rejected his bail applications in February 2021, observing that he had prima facie made the statements consciously, despite being aware of their consequences. He was subsequently granted conditional bail in March 2021.
In December 2024, the Madras High Court dismissed a petition filed in 2011 seeking to restrain Justice Karnan from making public statements against constitutional authorities and the judiciary. The Court held that the petition was not maintainable.