The Kerala High Court has granted approval to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to issue fresh summons to senior CPI(M) leader Thomas Isaac.
This permission allows the agency to continue its investigation into alleged violations in the financial transactions of KIIFB (Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board) during his tenure as the finance minister in the previous LDF (Left Democratic Front) government.
The high court specified that this decision is subject to further orders from the court and scheduled the matter for additional consideration on December 1. A bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran passed this order in response to a plea filed by Isaac, who sought the quashing of the two-summons issued to him by the ED. These summonses are part of the agency’s probe into alleged violations in the financial dealings of KIIFB.
The court’s order stated, “…the pendency of these writ petitions will not stand in the way of the ED issuing fresh summons to any person, including the petitioners, and to continue the investigation; however, subject to further orders from this court,” modifying the interim orders issued earlier.
Isaac, in the plea, argued that the ED was attempting to conduct a fishing and roving enquiry into the activities of KIIFB, which has been consistently disapproved by the apex court. He also claimed that the summons did not disclose the nature of the violation, if any, under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), or the details of the investigation for which his response was sought.
The ED had issued a notice to the senior Marxist leader in July last year, requesting his appearance before the agency. Isaac, however, did not appear, citing the need to attend classes at a party-run institute in the state capital. At that time, he labeled the ED notice as a ‘political move’ by the BJP government, alleging misuse of investigation agencies for political gains.
