The Madras High Court recently dismissed a petition filed in 2011, which sought to prevent retired High Court Judge CS Karnan from making public statements against constitutional authorities and the judiciary.

A bench consisting of Justices MS Ramesh and AD Maria Clete rejected the petition, filed by B Stalin, on the grounds that it was not maintainable. The court noted that the Judges (Protection) Act prevents courts from entertaining proceedings against a judge for actions or statements made while performing their official duties.

“Under Section 3 of the Judges (Protection) Act, 1985, no court shall entertain any proceeding against a Judge for any act thing or word committed, done or spoken by him when, or in the course of, acting or purporting to act in the discharge of his official or judicial function. Since the petitioner in this Writ Petition seeks for a Mandamus to restrain a named sitting Judge of the Madras High Court [now retired], which is impermissible in law, this Writ Petition is not maintainable and the objections made by the Registry in this regard is sustainable,” the High Court said.

The court also instructed the High Court Registry to return the case papers to the petitioner's counsel.

The petitioner had sought an order restraining Justice Karnan from making public statements, whether written or oral, against constitutional authorities, any branch of the judiciary, or advocates in the media.

Additionally, the petitioner requested that Justice Karnan be prohibited from engaging in any defamatory, scurrilous, derogatory, libelous, scandalous, or ruthless outcries.

Justice Karnan, a former judge of both the Madras and Calcutta High Courts, was sentenced to six months in prison by the Supreme Court in May 2017 for contempt of court. 

Following the verdict, Justice Karnan went into hiding but was arrested on June 20, 2017, in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, just before his retirement. He served his six-month sentence before being released.

Subsequently, Justice Karnan was arrested again in a separate case for making derogatory remarks against judges and women in videos circulated online. In 2021, the Madras High Court granted him bail in that matter.