Chennai: Still groping in the dark on the whereabouts of Calcutta high court judge C.S. Karnan, who has been evading the law for the past fortnight, West Bengal Police DGP says there is no deadline for the assignment and indicated that a team led by him will stay put here till they arrest him as per Supreme Court order.
Raj Kanojia, Director General of Police, West Bengal, also rejects suggestions that there has been a massive intelligence failure in tracking the judge, who was last spotted in Chennai on May 10 en route to Srikalahasti in Andhra Pradesh.“Every case has its own problems. But we cannot give ourselves a deadline in locating him. But we are sure of getting him,” Mr Kanojia told DC on Sunday.
“The hurdle is that he is not available. Search for him is going on with the help of TN police,” he further said. It may be noted that the West Bengal police team is Chennai for the last 12 days looking for Karnan. With the SC firmly rejecting Justice Karnan’s petition to recall the order, some members of the WB team are hoping the judge may appear himself before them.
The judge has been missing since the morning of May 10 from government guesthouse in Chepauk, Chennai, a day after SC ordered six months jail term to him in a defamation case. The police team from Kolkata reached Chennai the same day.
During their stay in Chennai, the WB police team has had several rounds of meetings with senior TN police officials including the TN DGP and Chennai city police commissioner. Chennai’s cyber sleuths are also engaged in tracking mobile signals of missing judge besides keeping an eye on his contacts.
Karnan hit headlines after a seven-judge Constitution bench, headed by Supreme Court Chief Justice J.S. Khehar, sentenced Justice Karnan for six months imprisonment on April 9 and ordered West Bengal police to execute the order and take custody of sitting judge.
The Supreme Court had on May 1, ordered Karnan’s medical examination on the ground that he was medically unfit to defend himself to the contempt proceedings initiated on Feb. 8 for his letters to PM and constitutional authorities seeking probe against certain judges.
