Former Calcutta High Court judge CS Karnan was arrested by the West Bengal CID from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu on Tuesday.
The CID acted on a Supreme Court order sentencing Karnan to six months jail.
The apex court had sentenced Justice Karnan to six months jail for contempt of court on 9 May, when he was a serving judge of the Calcutta High Court. He had been absconding since then.
The Supreme Court held Justice Karnan in contempt after he “sentenced” Chief Justice of India JS Khehar and seven other apex court judges to five-years of imprisonment. Justice Karnan had “found them guilty” under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989) and the amended Act of 2015.
He also accused 20 sitting and retired Supreme Court and high court judges of being corrupt.
Justice Karnan had claimed that the seven judges had insulted him “wantonly and deliberately and with mala fide intention”.
He asked the judges to defend themselves against the charge of violating the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, levelled by him. Justice Karnan had been insisting that he is being discriminated against because he is a Dalit.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)