The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is understood to have served a notice on the former Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac to appear before it on Tuesday.
The notice was served to gather information on some financial transactions regarding the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), sources indicated.
However, Dr. Isaac, when contacted, said he had not received any such notice from the agency. "Even if they serve me the notice to appear before them on Tuesday, I will not appear before them as I have more important things to do," said Dr. Isaac. "They can arrest me if they want. I will not be appearing before them," asserted Dr. Isaac.
The stand of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) is that the agency was acting as the political appendage of the BJP-led Central government to target the Opposition.
Dr. Isaac will be the second Minister in the first Pinarayi Vijayan government to be interrogated by the Central agency. Earlier, the Directorate had questioned K.T. Jaleel, Minister for Higher Education, Welfare of Minorities, Waqf and Hajj, a couple of times in connection with the distribution of Ramadan food kits by the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram. The consulate had paid for the food kits, which were procured from a State government agency. The Minister was also questioned regarding the consignments of Koran that he had received from the UAE Consulate, Thiruvananthapuram. The Koran was transported to various places in the State in government vehicles and distributed to some agencies. However, no offence was made out against Dr. Jaleel.
