The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Bollywood actor Dino Morea and his brother Santino Morea for questioning in connection with an alleged corruption case involving the desilting and cleaning of Mumbai's Mithi River.
The actor has been asked to appear before ED officials next week to record his statement.
The model-turned-actor found himself at the center of controversy on Friday (June 7), after ED officials conducted an extensive search of his Bandra residence in connection with the multi-crore Mithi River desilting scam. After nearly 14 hours of search operations and questioning, the ED team exited Dino's residence.
Besides Dino's house, ED officials carried out extensive search operations at 14 other locations across Mumbai and Kochi in a probe involving senior Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials, private contractors, and middlem.
The ED acted on leads pointing to financial links between Dino and the middlemen arrested in the case. Officials are also examining financial transactions involving the actor's brother’s company, UBO Ridez, which allegedly received Rs 18 lakh from the accused party.
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) had previously summoned and questioned Dino and his brother twice after uncovering that he had known middleman Ketan Kadam for over two decades. Kadam is believed to have played a key role in orchestrating the scam.
The Mithi River, a 18.64-km-long seasonal river in Mumbai, flows through areas with dense slum settlements and industrial zones. It serves as a crucial stormwater drain for the city, helping channel excess rainwater during the monsoon. However, over the years, it has become severely polluted due to unchecked dumping of garbage, sewage, and industrial waste by nearby residents and establishments.
The 2005 Mumbai floods brought attention to the river’s poor condition. In response, authorities initiated a clean-up drive to remove sludge and restore the river’s natural flow. However, the desilting project soon came under scrutiny. Allegations of large-scale corruption in the work sanctioned by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) surfaced, raising serious concerns about transparency and accountability.
Investigations by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and audits conducted by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) pointed to several irregularities. These included manipulation of tender processes, favoritism in awarding contracts, and inflated billing—issues that may have caused significant financial losses to the civic body.
Last month, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the EOW of Mumbai police had booked 13 people, including five private contractors, three BMC officials, three middlemen, and two private company officials, for causing wrongful loss to the civic body worth more than Rs 65.54 crore in the alleged scam. Desilting work contracts worth nearly Rs 1,100 crore are under the scanner.
