Trouble mounts for Ranya Rao as IT department initiates new probe

The IT department jumped into the case in order to unearth the source of the large funds the Kannada actress had access to.

Bengaluru: Trouble keeps mounting for gold smuggling suspect Harshavardini Ranya alias Ranya Rao as the Income Tax department has now begun its probe into the Kannada actress and her financial dealings.

On June 9, the Special Court for Economic Offences allowed an application moved by the IT department and permitted them to interrogate Ranya at the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, where she is held, between June 11 and 13.

The court dismissed the objections by Ranya’s counsel and allowed the IT officials to question her between 10 am and 5.30 pm and directed it to be videographed.

Despite Ranya and Raju being granted bail, they continue to remain in jail as they were booked under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities (COFEPOSA) Act, providing for their detention for nearly a year without bail.

On June 2, the Deputy Director (Investigations), IT department, Bengaluru, moved an application before the Special Court for Economic Offences in Bengaluru.

The IT department jumped into the case in order to unearth the source of the large funds that Ranya had access to, allowing her to buy gold from Dubai and then smuggle it into the country.

On March 3, Ranya, 33, was arrested at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru when she arrived from Dubai. DRI officials alleged that she had concealed 14.2 kg of foreign-origin gold bars worth Rs 12.56 crore on her person. The DRI subsequently arrested her accomplice Tarun Konduru Raju and Sahil Sakariya Jain, a jeweller from Ballari, who helped Ranya dispose of the smuggled gold.

The DRI has alleged that Jain helped Ranya transfer Rs 11 crore and Rs 11.25 crore to Dubai through the Hawala route in January and February, respectively, this year. He also accepted having helped Ranya get Rs 55 lakh and Rs 55.81 lakh in January and February, respectively, in Bengaluru through Hawala, the central agency claims.

The DRI suspects that Jain has helped Ranya dispose of 49 kg of gold worth Rs 40.13 crore. He allegedly accepted having helped her by sending Rs 38.3 crore to Dubai via Hawala and getting Rs 1.73 crore through the same channel. The DRI also claimed that Jain received Rs 55,000 as commission for each transaction.

Sources said that the IT department will examine all the monetary transactions made by Ranya and her accomplices to reveal the source of the funds.

Last month, the ED raided educational institutions linked to Home Minister G Parameshwara in Tumakuru and Bengaluru. This was due to the ED investigation revealing that “an educational trust diverted funds and made payments of Rs 40 lakh towards her credit card bills”. The ED had claimed that the payments were made “on the instructions of an influential individual”.