He was born in Bucharest, in the Dracului neighborhood. Cârjan played over 20 years for Unirea Tricolor București, winning the 1940–41 Divizia A title as a player-coach. In 1947, after the Communist regime came in Romania, the Ministry of Internal Affairs wanted Unirea Tricolor to merge with Ciocanul București in order to found Dinamo București. Cârjan, together with the club's president Valeriu Negulescu and player-secretary Constantin Anghelache opposed the merger. All three of them were sent to jail for their past membership in or suspected sympathy for the fascist Iron Guard; in particular, Cârjan was accused of harboring Iron Guard members after their failed rebellion. Constantin Anghelache and former coach Gheorghe Constantin claimed the arrests were the result of their opposition to the merger. In 1948 Cârjan received a ten years sentence which was served in Jilava and Aiud. Historian Gheorghe Bodea claimed he also passed through Gherla, Pitești and Văcărești prisons. After finishing his sentence, because of his refusal to collaborate with the Communist regime, Cârjan was forced to work for four years at the cutting of the common reed from the Danube Delta.