Bengaluru, Mar 27: A Sessions Court in Bengaluru on Thursday rejected the bail application of Kannada actress Ranya Rao in connection with the gold smuggling case.

Her bail petition is rejected for the third time. Earlier, the Special Court for Economic Offences and the Magistrate Court had rejected her bail petition.

Rao, the stepdaughter of senior police officer Ramchandra Rao, was arrested on March 3 for allegedly smuggling 14.2 kilograms of gold, valued at over Rs 12.56 crore.

The prosecution has argued in court that the actress has admitted to using hawala channels to buy the bullion.

The authorities have issued a notice to initiate a judicial inquiry against Ranya Rao, as this will reveal other financial irregularities.

Tarun Raju, a close associate of the actress, is the second accused in the case and is also awaiting the court's decision on his bail application.

Meanwhile, Sahil Sakariya Jain, a gold merchant, was arrested on Wednesday for his alleged involvement in disposing of the smuggled gold linked to Ranya Rao. This marked the third arrest in the case.

Jain has been sent to police custody for four days for further investigation.

Earlier, Counsel Madhu Rao, appearing for the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) at the Special Economic Offences Court, said that Tarun and Ranya have travelled together to Dubai about 26 times.

Tarun travelled from Dubai to Hyderabad on a ticket booked by Ranya Rao. Additionally, Tarun gave gold to Ranya Rao in Dubai

Senior police officer Ramchandra Rao has also been questioned in the gold smuggling case.

On March 15, the Karnataka government placed DGP K. Ramachandra Rao on compulsory leave with immediate effect and until further notice in connection with the case.

Ranya misused her stepfather Rao's name to escape security checks by availing the protocol reserved for officials of the highest rank.

The investigations by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials revealed that Jain was a jewellery shop owner, hailing from Ballari district in Karnataka.

The arrest came after police interrogated Ranya Rao and her former boyfriend Tarun Raju, both of whom are already in custody, and discovered their links to Sahil. Based on this connection, Sahil was taken into custody for four days for further questioning.

(IANS)

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