Justice C.S. Karnan Recall Petition Refused By The Supreme Court

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justice karnan petition refused by supreme court of india 1
justice karnan petition refused by supreme court of india 1

 

 

JUSTICE C.S. KARNAN RECALL PETITION REFUSED BY THE SUPREME COURT

The Supreme Court has refused a writ petition which was filed by Justice C.S. Karnan, of the Calcutta high court. The writ petition was filed to recall the May 9, 2017 order sentencing him to six months imprisonment for contempt of court. The top court held his petition was not maintainable. As a result, Justice Karnan had to surrender and has served the sentence as his plea to the President for mercy which is unlikely to be considered in the next few days.

The registrar (judicial) said that it was well settled that apex court’s judicial proceedings are not amenable to be challenged under Article 32 of the Constitution. Justice C.S.  Karnan, in his petition, has said that the entire proceeding from February 8 was without jurisdiction, from the issuing of contempt notice, to his conviction and sentence.

He also said that from a mere reading of the provisions of the Contempt of Courts Act, it was manifest that what could constitute criminal contempt was any “publication”. That publication should scandalizes, or tends to scandalize, or lowers or tends to lower, the authority of any court.

According to Justice Karnan, the allegations contained in the said letter were against the judges named therein and not against any court — neither the Supreme Court nor the Madras high court. If the said allegations were untrue, they would, at the most, amount to defamation, which would entail an actionable right, both civil and criminal, in the judges named in the said letter. He further pointed out that the May 9 order, sending him to jail for six months, was passed in his absence and declaration that the contempt notice issued on February 8 is hence void.

Aggressive judge on backfoot

Earlier on Monday, Calcutta HC judge Justice C.S. Karnan has been warned by the Supreme Court via a five-judge constitution which was hearing a batch of pleas on triple talaq, for sending his advocate repeatedly to seek urgent hearing against the award of six month jail term to him.

 

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