Bengaluru: Actor Ranya Rao has alleged that she was subjected to custodial torture, physically assaulted and coerced into signing blank documents after her arrest in the high-profile gold smuggling case. In a letter addressed to the Additional Director General (ADG) of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), she claimed that officials detained her directly from the aircraft—not from the airport terminal, as officially stated—and then mistreated her while in custody.

Ranya stated that she was slapped multiple times, denied food and sleep, and threatened with exposure of her stepfather’s identity—Karnataka Director General of Police K Ramachandra Rao—to force a confession. She further alleged that she was being framed to shield more powerful individuals involved in the smuggling network. The letter, written from Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, was submitted as part of a jail memo.

However, her claims have come under scrutiny. The letter was dated March 6. However, when she was presented before a special court on March 9, she reportedly denied any custodial torture when asked three times by the judge. Her legal team also did not raise any allegations of mistreatment at that time.

The court on Friday rejected Ranya’s bail plea, citing her frequent travel to Dubai—27 times since January 2025—as a major factor. The DRI has accused her of smuggling over 14 kg of gold from Dubai, allegedly concealing gold bars by taping them to her body, placing them in her jeans pockets, and hiding them in her shoes. Authorities estimate the customs duty evasion at Rs 4.83 crore, well above the Rs 50 lakh threshold under the Customs Act.

The case has sparked political controversy, with the Karnataka government initially ordering a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe into protocol violations at the airport. However, the order was withdrawn within 24 hours, fueling speculation of political interference. Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara later clarified that the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) was already handling the matter, making a parallel investigation unnecessary.

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched an independent probe into whether government officials played a role in facilitating the smuggling operation. The DRI suspects that the case is part of a broader smuggling network operating from Dubai. This suspicion gained further traction when 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 on March 6.

Following her arrest, investigators raided her residence, seizing gold jewelry worth Rs 2.06 crore and Rs 2.67 crore in cash. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has since launched a money-laundering investigation to trace financial transactions linked to the case.