Bengaluru, Apr 9: Karnataka High Court Wednesday adjourned the hearing on the bail petition of Kannada actress Ranya Rao till April 17, further directing the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) to file objections regarding the matter.

Ranya Rao, the stepdaughter of Karnataka DGP K. Ramachandra Rao, was arrested on charges of gold smuggling from the Bengaluru airport.

A special court in Bengaluru has remanded the actress to judicial custody till April 21. Currently, she is lodged in the central prison, located on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

The Special Court for Economic Offences also extended the judicial custody of the second accused, Tarun Raju, and the third accused, jeweller Sahil Sakaria Jain, till April 21.

Ranya 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 case is presently being investigated by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The state government has set up a special team led by a senior IAS officer to look into the role of DGP Ramachandra Rao. The report in this regard has been submitted to the government, sources stated.

The investigation into the gold smuggling case involving Ranya Rao by the DRI has revealed that the actress has been involved in hawala transactions in collusion with Jain, the third accused in the case.

The DRI, in its remand application submitted to the Special Court for Economic Offences in connection with the arrest of Jain in the gold smuggling case, alleged that the jeweller and Ranya Rao were involved in a hawala nexus.

The investigations have found that with the help of Jain, Ranya Rao disposed of 49.6 kg of gold and transferred Rs 38.4 crore of hawala money to Dubai.

The DRI stated, "The investigations have indicated that Jain, hailing from Ballari and settled in Bengaluru, assisted and abetted Ranya Rao in disposing of 49.6 kilograms of gold worth around Rs 40 crore and transferring hawala money of Rs 38.4 crore to Dubai."

(IANS)

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