A special court in Bengaluru on Tuesday granted default bail to Kannnada actress Ranya Rao under strict conditions in a gold smuggling case. Tarun Konduru Raju, another accused in the case, has also been granted bail b the Special Court for Economic Offences.
However, the duo are unlikely to be released from jail as the have been charged under the stringent Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities (COFEPOSA) Act, 1974.
Under this Act, the accused is not be eligible for bail for at least a year.
In its bail order, the special court directed the two to appear before it on all dates of hearing without fail, not tamper with or hamper witnesses, co-operate with the investigation, not leave the country without prior permission from the court, and not commit similar offences in the future.
“It is made clear that any violation of the conditions imposed by this court will result in the cancellation of bail,” it observed.
Ranya, the stepdaughter of senior IPS officer K. Ramchandra Rao, was arrested was arrested by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on her arrival at Kempegowda international airport in Bengaluru on March 3 after gold bars worth Rs 12.56 crore were seized from her.
The agency, in a followup search, allegedly recovered gold jewellery worth Rs 2.06 crore and Rs 2.67 crore in cash from her residence.
As the case snowballed into a political hot topic in the state, the government sent Ramchandra Rao to compulsory leave.
