ED trying to threaten KIIFB officials: Kerala CM

Thiruvananthapuram: Days after the ED summoned top officials of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board,Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday claimed the agency made attempts to threaten the state government officials and lashed out at the Centre.

Continuing his attack on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Vijayan accused her of trying to "destroy" the KIIFB by raising "baseless allegations" against it and "misusing" the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under her ministry for political purposes.

The ED, probing the state-owned agency's external borrowings through 'Masala Bonds', made attempts to threaten state government officials after summoning them into their office, he alleged.

He said legal action would be initiated against such central agency officials.

"Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is also a senior leader of the BJP, is raising baseless allegations against KIIFB which ushers in unprecedented development in the state", Vijayan told reporters here and referred to her allegations against KIIFB at a recent poll rally in Tripunithura. Vijayan alleged that as the people dismissed her charges, "she began her effort to destroy it misusing the Enforcement Directorate under her ministry."

"Some investigators of the central agency were now showing undue hastiness to implement their political bosses' orders," he claimed.

Vijayan lashed out at the Centre over the issue after the Enforcement Directorate summoned top officials of KIIFB.

The chief minister claimed that the ED had no interest in collecting information from the KIIFB officials for the probe.