Karnataka HC adjourns Ranya Rao’s bail plea hearing until April 17

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday adjourned actor Ranya Rao’s bail plea hearing until April 17 in the gold smuggling case. The court has instructed the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) to file objections.

On April 2, the Special Court for Economic Offences sent Sahil Jain, the third accused in the Ranya Rao gold smuggling case, to 14 days in judicial custody. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) presented him before the court on Wednesday after his custody period ended.

On April 1, Actor Ranya Rao approached the Karnataka High Court for bail, days after a sessions court in Bengaluru rejected her plea for relief. Rao’s lawyer B S Girish submitted the petition, which the High Court will take up next week.

On March 27, the 64th CCH Sessions Court in Bengaluru rejected the bail application of Ranya Rao in connection with a gold smuggling case. Ranya Rao was arrested on March 3 at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport after officials from the DRI found her carrying gold. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) later filed an FIR based on a complaint by Abhishek Chandra Gupta, Additional Director of DRI.

The FIR was registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1988, along with several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita (BNS). According to the complaint, two foreign nationals were arrested at Mumbai Airport on March 6 for attempting to smuggle 21.28 kg of gold into India, valued at Rs. 18.92 crore.

According to the complaint, after Ranya Rao’s arrest on March 3, two foreign nationals were also arrested on March 6 at the Mumbai airport for attempting to smuggle 21.28 kg of gold into India worth Rs. 18.92 crore, as per the complaint.

The CBI has filed an FIR in the gold smuggling case on the complaint of Abhishek Chandra Gupta, Additional Director of DRI. The FIR has been registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita (BNS) on the complaint of Abhishek Chandra Gupta.

The Additional Director of DRI, in his complaint, has said that these cases involving passengers making trips from Dubai and attempting to smuggle gold in large quantities point to a “possible nexus” with a coordinated smuggling syndicate, possibly operating from Dubai (UAE).

In Ranya Rao’s case, she travelled to Dubai multiple times, while the two arrested foreign nationals had previously arrived at the Mumbai airport multiple times. Gupta, in his complaint, also suspected the possibility of the involvement of public servants and others. (ANI)