{"id":3912,"date":"2025-04-23T01:09:05","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T19:39:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/?p=3912"},"modified":"2025-04-23T01:24:14","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T19:54:14","slug":"actress-ranya-raos-bail-fate-hangs-in-balance-as-hc-reserves-order-in-gold-smuggling-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/?p=3912","title":{"rendered":"Actress Ranya Rao’s Bail Fate Hangs in Balance as HC Reserves Order in Gold Smuggling Case"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Karnataka High Court Reserves Order on Bail Pleas of Actress Ranya Rao, Co-Accused in Gold Smuggling Case<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bengaluru, June 6<\/strong>: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on the bail petitions of Kannada actress Ranya Rao and her associate Tarun Konduru Raju, arrested last month by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in connection with an alleged gold smuggling racket.<\/p>\n

A bench headed by Justice S. Vishwajit Shetty heard arguments from both sides, as the DRI sought further custody of the accused for interrogation, while the defense contended procedural lapses in their arrest.<\/p>\n

Defense Challenges Legality of Arrest, Seizure<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Ranya Rao\u2019s counsel argued that the DRI violated provisions of the Customs Act during the seizure of gold ornaments and biscuits from her at the airport and later from her residence. The lawyer claimed that the search was not conducted in the presence of a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate, as mandated by law.<\/p>\n

Additionally, the defense cited a Supreme Court ruling requiring law enforcement to inform family members in writing before making an arrest. However, Ranya\u2019s husband was allegedly informed only via phone. Her counsel further argued that since the charges carry a maximum sentence of seven years, the Magistrate Court had the authority to grant bail, yet she has remained in judicial custody for 49 days.<\/p>\n

Co-Accused Denies Involvement<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Raju\u2019s legal team contended that his only link to the case was his partnership in Ranya\u2019s company, asserting that he had no direct role in gold smuggling. “Ranya is financially independent and capable of purchasing gold herself,” his lawyer argued.<\/p>\n

When the court pointed out the DRI\u2019s claim that Raju provided funds for gold purchases, his counsel countered, “These allegations lack substantiated proof. If there was customs duty evasion, Ranya alone should be held accountable, not Raju.” The defense maintained that Raju\u2019s sole alleged involvement was handing over gold to Ranya in Dubai, with no direct ties to smuggling operations in India.<\/p>\n

DRI Alerts Court of Wider Smuggling Network<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Opposing bail, the DRI\u2019s advocate alleged that Ranya and Raju were key players in a smuggling syndicate, funneling gold from Dubai to India via a third accused, Sahil Jain. “We are investigating evidence linked to nearly 100 kg of smuggled gold, and the probe is ongoing,” the DRI counsel said.<\/p>\n

The agency further claimed that Raju, a US citizen, frequently purchased gold in Dubai under the guise of exporting it to Switzerland and Thailand, only to route it illegally into India through Ranya. “The duo made 31 trips to Dubai, with 25 being same-day returns,” the DRI revealed.<\/p>\n

Rejecting claims of procedural violations, the agency stated that Ranya\u2019s husband was duly informed of her arrest in writing. The DRI also highlighted an ongoing inquiry into how Ranya allegedly received protocol privileges at Bengaluru airport upon returning from the US.<\/p>\n

With the court reserving its order, the accused remain in custody as the high-stakes legal battle continues.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n

Official Statements in the Ranya Rao Gold Smuggling Case<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

DRI (Directorate of Revenue Intelligence) Statement:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

“We have strong evidence linking Ranya Rao and Tarun Raju to an organized gold smuggling syndicate. Investigations reveal repeated trips to Dubai, suspicious financial transactions, and evasion of customs duty. The accused were part of a larger network smuggling gold into India, and further interrogation is necessary to uncover all involved.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Ranya Rao\u2019s Legal Team Statement:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

“The arrest and seizure of gold were conducted in violation of legal procedures\u2014no Gazetted Officer was present during the search, and mandatory arrest protocols were ignored. Ms. Rao has been wrongly detained for 49 days despite bailable offenses. We trust the judiciary will uphold her rights.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Tarun Raju\u2019s Legal Team Statement:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

“Mr. Raju is being falsely implicated merely due to his business association with Ranya Rao. There is no proof of his direct involvement in smuggling. The allegations of funding gold purchases are baseless. We demand his immediate release on bail.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Background of the Case<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The\u00a0Karnataka gold smuggling case<\/strong>\u00a0came to light in\u00a0May 2024<\/strong>\u00a0when the\u00a0Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI)<\/strong>\u00a0intercepted\u00a0Kannada actress Ranya Rao<\/strong>\u00a0at\u00a0Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru<\/strong>, after her return from Dubai. Officials allegedly recovered\u00a0undeclared gold ornaments and biscuits<\/strong>\u00a0from her luggage and later conducted raids at her residence, seizing more gold.<\/p>\n

Key Developments:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
    \n
  • \n

    Tarun Konduru Raju<\/strong>, a US-based business partner of Ranya Rao, was arrested shortly after for allegedly financing gold purchases in Dubai and facilitating smuggling into India.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    The\u00a0DRI suspects<\/strong>\u00a0that the duo made\u00a031 trips to Dubai<\/strong>\u00a0in recent years, with\u00a025 being same-day returns<\/strong>, raising suspicions of smuggling operations.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    A\u00a0third accused, Sahil Jain<\/strong>, is under investigation for allegedly receiving smuggled gold in India.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    The\u00a0DRI estimates<\/strong>\u00a0that the network may have smuggled\u00a0over 100 kg of gold<\/strong>, evading customs duties worth crores.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    The\u00a0Magistrate Court initially denied bail<\/strong>, leading to the accused approaching the\u00a0Karnataka High Court<\/strong>, which has now reserved its order.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The case has drawn significant attention due to Ranya Rao\u2019s celebrity status and the alleged scale of the smuggling operation. Investigations are ongoing, with the DRI seeking further custody for interrogation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n
    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    <\/div>\n

    <\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

    <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Karnataka High Court Reserves Order on Bail Pleas of Actress Ranya Rao, Co-Accused in Gold Smuggling Case Bengaluru, June 6: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on the bail petitions of Kannada actress Ranya Rao and her associate Tarun Konduru Raju, arrested last month by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[211,212,178,74,755,128],"class_list":["post-3912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-karnataka","tag-gold","tag-gold-smuggling-case","tag-high-court","tag-karnataka","tag-karnataka-high-court","tag-ranya-rao"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3912"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3912\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3914,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3912\/revisions\/3914"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/belgaumnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}