Kannada Actress Ranya Booked Under Non-Bailable COFEPOSA In Gold Smuggling Case, To Stay In Jail For 1 Year

The Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA), has been invoked against Kannada actress Ranya Rao in connection with a gold smuggling case, sources confirmed on Friday.

The Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB), the nodal agency under the Ministry of Finance, has invoked the COFEPOSA Act against the actress and other accused individuals, following a recommendation from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), which is currently investigating the matter.

Photo Credit: https://x.com/RanyaRao

With the invocation of the COFEPOSA Act, Ranya Rao will be ineligible for bail for a period of one year.

Authorities invoke the Act to prevent the accused from resuming smuggling activities upon release. It is also applied in cases where the accused is perceived as uncooperative with investigative agencies, according to sources.

Sources indicated that central agencies resorted to this measure after multiple bail attempts were made by Ranya Rao and the other accused. The COFEPOSA Act has also been applied to Tarun Raju and Sahil Sakaria Jain.

Ranya Rao, the stepdaughter of senior police official Ramchandra Rao, was apprehended on 3 March for her alleged role in smuggling 14.2 kilograms of gold, valued at more than ₹12.56 crore.

The three accused are currently being held at Bengaluru Central Prison.

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

The state government has constituted a special team, headed by a senior IAS officer, to investigate the involvement of DGP Ramchandra Rao. A report on the matter has already been submitted to the government, according to sources.

The DRI's investigation has uncovered that the actress had engaged in hawala transactions in collaboration with Jain, the third accused in the case.

In its remand plea submitted to the Special Court for Economic Offences regarding Jain's arrest, the DRI alleged that the jeweller and Ranya Rao were part of a hawala network.

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 ₹40 crore and transferring hawala money of ₹38.4 crore to Dubai."