ED issues notice to Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan in Rs 2000-crore

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 01, Dec 2025, 12:29 pm IST | UPDATED: 01, Dec 2025, 12:29 pm IST

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a Rs 466-crore show cause notice under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, former finance minister Thomas Issac, and the CM's chief principal secretary K M Abraham in connection with the KIIFB Masala Bond case, officials confirmed on Monday.

The notice, which does not require a personal appearance, was issued about 10-12 days ago by the federal probe agency under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

A show cause notice is issued after the end of the investigation in a FEMA investigation, and the contravention quantified in it is akin to a penalty.

What is the case?

The probe pertains to the end-use of Rs 2,000 crore raised by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) through masala bonds and whether the fund’s activities complied with FEMA guidelines.

KIIFB is the primary agency of the state government for financing large and critical infrastructure projects and had raised Rs 2,150 crore in 2019 through its debut masala bond issue as part of its plan to mobilise Rs 50,000 crore to fund large and critical infrastructure projects in the state.