[Dr. Thomas Isaac v. ED] He has right to privacy; why do you want these documents in probe into KIIFB? Kerala High Court to ED

The Kerala High Court on Thursday asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to explain why it has sought documents relating to personal assets of former Kerala Finance Minister Dr. Thomas Isaac in connection with the probe into financial transactions of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Board (KIIFB). [Dr. TM Thomas Issac v The Deputy Director].Single-judge Justice VG Arun orally observed that Dr. Isaac has right to privacy and it cannot be curtailed without following the proper procedure established by law."He has a right to privacy also that can't be breached without following the procedure established by law. Can you ask him for all these documents at the first instance as you have done here," the judge queried.The central agency has sought Isaac's income tax returns, details of financial transactions and movable and immovable properties belonging to him and his family members.The Central government counsel Jaishankar V Nair said that Isaac can appear and convince the investigating officer that his documents are not required. "He should cooperate in good faith, more so because he is a public personality. He should co-operate with the investigation. What is the apprehension here? He can appear before the investigating officer and submit the documents. If he doesn't have the documents, he can convince the IO that they need not be perused. There is no threat at the moment that he is an accused," Nair contended.But the judge said that seeking such documents at a preliminary stage even before a person is a suspect or an accused, will have to be explained. "During the course of enquiry, if he is a witness today, a suspect tomorrow, and later an accused, you can ask but at a preliminary stage itself can a person be asked to produce all these documents? It depends on the subjective satisfaction of the person who is conducting the enquiry. At a later stage he may feel it is necessary. But as is rightly pointed out, what is the material before you at this stage to conclude that all these documents should be produced at the first instance? I want an answer as to why you need these documents. Requiring a person to produce all these documents at the first instance needs to be explained," the Court maintained. The government counsel then sought time to take instructions and the matter was posted for further consideration on August 17, Wednesday. .In his plea, Isaac submitted that the ED has asked him to appear before it today, August 11, to explain his role in the KIIFB.He alleged that even though the summons mentions the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act and the Income Tax act, it does not reveal the exact violations that are being investigated.The attempt by the ED is to conduct a fishing and roving enquiry, the kind that has been deprecated repeatedly by the Supreme Court, it was contended.Senior Counsel Siddhartha Dave, appearing for Isaac, said that the ED was acting as if Isaac has committed some crime though the probe is into KIIFB"They are acting as if I have committed some crime even though the probe is into KIIFB and the issue of masala bonds. Am I being summoned in my individual capacity? This is a roving enquiry about my assets... This is a serious matter. If it is required for a Magistrate to show application of mind, the ED should also have to show application of mind to issue summons," Dave said.Isaac is being represented by advocates Nandagopal S Kurup, N Raghuraj, Sayuja and Vivek Menon.Interestingly, 5 MLAs of the ruling Left front have also approached the High Court by way of a separate public interest litigation (PIL) petition challenging the probe by the ED.That case is posted for hearing today before a division bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.