NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday conducted multiple raids in Karnataka in gold smuggling case in which actress Ranya Rao was arrested by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence.
According to the agency, a case has been field under the Prevention of Money laundering Act, taking cognizance of a FIR registered by Central Bureau of Investigation.
Actress Ranya Rao was arrested on March 3 from Kempe Gowda International Airport Bengaluru for attempting to smuggle 14.2 Kg gold worth Rs 12.56 crores.
During her questioning, Rao claimed that her trip to Dubai was for business purposes. However, authorities suspect that her visit was linked to the illegal importation of gold.
Earlier, CBI filed an FIR in the Ranya Rao gold smuggling case on the complaint of Abhishek Chandra Gupta, Additional Director of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI).
According to the complaint, after Ranya Rao’s arrest on March 3, two foreign nationals were also arrested on March 6 from Mumbai airport for attempting to smuggle 21.28 Kg of gold into India worth Rs. 18.92 crores, as per the complaint.
Abhishek Chandra Gupta, 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 points to a “possible nexus” with coordinated smuggling syndicate, possibly operating from Dubai (UAE).
“The above two cases detected in quick succession involving passengers making trips from Dubai, the attempted smuggling of large quantities of gold into India and the high frequency of these visits involving Indian and foreign nationals, points to a possible nexus with coordinated smuggling syndicate, possibly operating from Dubai (UAE). This may have larger national and international ramifications. The possibility of involvement of unknown public servants of the Govt. of India and unknown others, with such coordinated network, needs to be investigated,” the complaint said.
Meanwhile, Karnataka home department withdrew the order to probe potential lapses and dereliction of duty by police officers at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru. This came days after the state’s government handed the case over to the Crime Investigation Department under mounting pressure
The subsequent order issued on Wednesday clarified that the CID investigation was being withdrawn as additional chief secretary Gaurav Gupta is already investigating the alleged role of Ranya’s stepfather, K Ramachandra Rao, a senior officer of the Director General of Police (DGP) rank.
Gupta’s inquiry will focus on the circumstances surrounding the misuse of protocol-related facilities and the involvement of Ramachandra Rao in the case.
The controversy erupted after reports suggested that Ranya Rao had used VIP courtesy services at the airport to bypass security checks, thereby engaging in illegal activities. It is alleged that Ranya leveraged her connections to smuggle gold from Dubai to Bengaluru.