C. S. Karnan: key obituary facts
Is C. S. Karnan dead? Yes. C. S. Karnan died on November 13, 2026, at age 71.
Cause of death: C. S. Karnan's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was C. S. Karnan known for?
He was an Indian judge.
More about C. S. Karnan
Born: 12 June 1955.
Gender: male.
Occupation: judge.
C.
S. Karnan, an Indian jurist who served as a judge of the Madras and Calcutta High Courts, died on November 13, 2026, aged 71.
He was born Karunanithi Swaminathan on June 12, 1955, in Karnatham, in the Cuddalore district of what was then Madras, now Tamil Nadu. He was the second of eight children of Chinnaswamy Swaminathan, a schoolteacher and headmaster who received the President’s Best Teacher Award, and Kamalam, a homemaker. After earning a law degree in 1983, he enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and practised civil law. His legal work included service as legal adviser to the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewage Board, government advocate in civil suits, and standing counsel for the Union government. Karnan served on the Madras High Court from 2009 to 2016, then on the Calcutta High Court from 2016 to 2017. In May 2017, the Supreme Court of India found him guilty of contempt of court and sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment. He became the first Indian High Court judge to be punished for contempt while in office; he was arrested and jailed after retirement.