Ashish Pandey 
Bengaluru:
Actor Ranya Rao has claimed that she has been subjected to custodial torture and falsely implicated in the high-profile gold smuggling case. In a letter addressed to the Additional Director General (ADG) of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Ms Rao alleges that she was arrested directly from the aircraft and not from the airport terminal, as officially stated.
She further claimed she was physically assaulted, denied food and sleep, and coerced into signing blank documents under duress.
Her accusations come a day after a special court in Bengaluru denied her bail request. The case has taken a political turn, with the Karnataka government ordering a probe into the alleged involvement of Ms Rao’s stepfather, Karnataka Director General of Police K Ramachandra Rao, and investigating possible lapses by law enforcement authorities.
Ms Rao was arrested by the DRI at Kempegowda International Airport on March 3 after she was allegedly caught smuggling over 14 kg of gold from Dubai. However, in her letter from Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, she insists she was detained inside the aircraft before disembarking, contradicting official reports.
The letter, submitted as part of a jail memo, contains claims of mistreatment. Ms Rao claimed that she was slapped multiple times, threatened with exposure of her father’s identity, and forced to sign blank papers. She alleged that she was being framed to shield more influential individuals involved in the smuggling network.
But these allegations are questionable. Ms Rao wrote the letter on March 6. She was brought to court on March 9. The judge asked her three times whether there was any custodial torture, and she denied it thrice. Neither did her lawyers raise any torture allegations.
On Friday, the Special Court for Economic Offences in Bengaluru rejected Ms Rao’s bail plea.
“In the case on hand, the accused No.1 (Ranya Rao) possessing Resident Identity Card of UAE and having a history of travelled to Dubai on 27 occasions since January 2025, is another factor which does not incline the court to extend discretionary relief of granting bail,” Special Judge Vishwanath C Gowdar observed.
The court said that the alleged offence has serious ramifications for the country’s economy, given the quantity of gold smuggled. It cited preliminary findings that suggest Ms Rao concealed gold bars by taping them to her body, placing them inside her jeans pockets, and even hiding them in her shoes.
The DRI has estimated the evasion of customs duties and penalties at Rs 4.83 crore, far exceeding the legal threshold of Rs 50 lakh under the Customs Act.
The state had initially ordered a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe into protocol violations at the airport. However, the order was withdrawn within 24 hours, leading to speculation about political influence. Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara defended the decision, stating that since the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) was already handling the matter, a parallel police investigation was unnecessary.
Following a complaint by the DRI, the CBI has launched an independent probe into the alleged role of unknown public servants in facilitating the smuggling operation.
On March 6, just days after Ms Rao’s arrest, two foreign nationals – one from Oman and another from the UAE – were caught smuggling 21.28 kg of gold through Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The DRI believes these cases are interconnected and part of a larger gold smuggling syndicate operating from Dubai.
“The possibility of the involvement of unknown public servants of the government of India and unknown others, with such coordinated network, needs to be investigated,” the DRI said.
Following Ms Rao’s arrest, authorities conducted raids at her residence, uncovering gold jewelry worth Rs 2.06 crore and Rs 2.67 crore in cash. The ED has launched a money-laundering probe to track the financial transactions linked to the case.
