Kannada film actress Ranya Rao has been sentenced to one year imprisonment under the COFEPOSA in the case of gold smuggling.
The Advisory Board, who is looking into the Prevention of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act (COFEPOSA) case, recently ruled that Rao would not be granted bail during the entire period of his custody.
Earlier, after the Revenue Intelligence Directorate (DRI) failed to file a chargesheet legally within the stipulated time limit, Rao was granted default bail by a city court on 20 May along with his co-accused Tarun Raju.
Despite being granted bail on bonds of Rs 2 lakh and bail terms, both Ranya and Tarun were detained due to preventive detention order under Cofeposa, which allows to keep in custody for a year even without formal allegations on suspicion of smuggling activities.
In March, Ranya Rao arrived here from Dubai and tried to pass through the Green Channel of Camemegowda International Airport, usually reserved for travelers who do not have a feeable goods.
When the DRI officials asked him if he had an undeclared item, he appeared worried. Due to her suspicious behavior, the authorities searched her thoroughly by female officials.
A total of 14.2 kg of gold was recovered from him, which costs around Rs 12.56 crore and was immediately taken into custody. The earlier bail petitions of Ranya were rejected twice by local courts and later by the Karnataka High Court.
