Gold smuggling case: BIG action against Ranya Rao's stepfather, DGP K Ramachandra Rao; sent on...

Film actress Ranya Rao's stepfather -- a senior police officer in Karnataka -- has been sent on a "compulsory leave" just days after the former was arrested in a case of gold smuggling. The order for K Ramachandra Rao -- the Director General of Police (Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation) -- was issued on Saturday (March 15). No reason for the leave was specified in the order.
Ranya was arrested at the Bengaluru international airport earlier this month, after officials found nearly 15 kilograms of gold in her possession.

4 Dubai trips in 15 days
Ranya had been under the radar of the authorities for some time and their suspicion grew after she made four trips to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) in a span of just 15 days.
On March 3, she was arrested by officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) after gold worth over Rs 12.5 crore was seized from her at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru.
She was allegedly trying to smuggle gold into India by wearing a significant amount and concealing the rest in her clothes.

Multifold investigation
After her arrest, officials launched a search at her home where they found gold jewellery worth over Rs 2 crore and Indian currency amounting to Rs. 2.67 crore.
Now three agencies are probing different angles of the case. The DRI is investing charges against Ranya, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing the wider international smuggling network, while the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is looking at the money laundering aspect of these cases.
Meanwhile, the Karnataka government has also launched an inquiry into the alleged misuse of VIP airport protocol privileges by Ranya.

'Like any father...'
In an earlier statement, K Ramachandra Rao said he was "shocked and devastated" to hear of the case.
"Like any other father, I was shocked and devastated when it came to my notice through the media. I was not aware of any of these things. I don't want to say anything more," he said at the time of Ranya's arrest.