Bengaluru: There seems to be more trouble in store for Kannada actor Ranya Rao, who has now been in jail for nearly six months on charges of gold smuggling.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has issued showcause notices to her and three others in connection with the matter. In the notice sent to Ranya, the DRI had demanded a penalty of Rs 102.55 crore. Her property may get attached if the actor fails to pay the penalty.
The DRI had also served notices to her co-accused Tarun Konduru Raju, Sahil Jain and Bharat Jain. Raju and Sahil are also in prison. While Raju has been directed to pay Rs 62 crore as penalty, Sahil will have to hand over Rs 53 crore.
The DRI seized 127.3 kg gold from Ranya alone. Much of this was smuggled, hence the penalty. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which has taken up the matter, has told the court that the actor was operating a gold smuggling racket and had travelled abroad frequently over the last year for this.
Sources said that the DRI notices comprise 250-300 pages each with additional material to support the case in about 2,500 pages.
Ranya (33) was arrested by the DRI from the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on March 3 this year. She was allegedly carrying 14.2 kg of foreign-origin gold bars worth Rs 12.56 crore on her person.
Raju (36), a US citizen, was arrested by the DRI six days after Ranya was taken into custody. The DRI claimed that he was her associate in the gold smuggling. Sahil (27), a Jain, 27, a jeweller from Ballari in Karnataka, was arrested on March 26 for allegedly helping the actress dispose of the gold, sharing the proceeds from the sale and helping in hawala transactions.
Though all three were granted bail by a special court, they continue to remain in jail as the government invoked the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA) against them.
This effectively means that the three of them will continue to remain behind the bars for one year (from the date of their arrests). Hence, there is little possibility of Ranya being released before March, 2026.