Gold Smuggling Fiasco: Constable’s complicity, DCP’s blind eye, and ACS Gupta’s crumbling cover-up in Karnataka

The arrest of Kannada actress Ranya Rao on March 3, 2025, at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) with 14.2 kg of gold worth Rs 12.56 crore strapped to her body has ripped open a festering wound in Karnataka’s law enforcement system. What should have been a straightforward smuggling bust has spiraled into a damning exposé of privilege misuse, police negligence, and a leadership so detached it’s laughable—if it weren’t so infuriating. 

At the center of this circus is Constable Basavaraj, a protocol officer stationed at KIA for over a decade, and a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) who apparently couldn’t be bothered to notice a VIP smuggling spree under his nose. Add a clean chit from Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Gaurav Gupta to Ranya’s stepfather, DGP K. Ramachandra Rao, and you’ve got a scandal that screams incompetence—or worse.

Constable Basavaraj isn’t just a bit player; he’s the linchpin of this mess. Stationed at the Airport Police Station since the early 2010s, he was Ranya’s go-to guy, greasing the wheels of her illicit operations with protocol privileges reserved for the elite. 

According to his own statement to the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Basavaraj received explicit instructions from Ramachandra Rao to ensure Ranya’s smooth passage through customs. He didn’t just roll out the red carpet once—he did it repeatedly, including on the day of her arrest, when she called him at 6:20 PM to arrange a Green Channel exit. 

Travel records show Ranya made 27 trips to Dubai in three months—nearly one every three days—yet Basavaraj claims he had no clue she was smuggling gold worth crores. Either he’s the most gullible constable in Karnataka, or he’s lying through his teeth. Both are indefensible.

Now, let’s talk about the DCP of the Bengaluru airport jurisdiction—where was he? How does an IPS officer, trained to collect intelligence and maintain order, miss a VIP jetting off to Dubai 27 times in 90 days, each time whisked through security by a constable who’s been glued to the same post for a decade? This isn’t rocket science—it’s basic policing. 

A routine check of VIP movements, a glance at who’s coming and going daily, would’ve flagged Ranya’s pattern faster than you can say “smuggling syndicate.” Yet, the DCP was either asleep at the wheel or deliberately looking the other way. Sources suggest no such checks were in place, no questions asked about why Constable Basavaraj was Ranya’s personal escort, and no curiosity about a police vehicle from Rao’s residence making regular airport runs. This isn’t just negligence; it’s a betrayal of every IPS oath sworn.

Ramachandra Rao’s defense is as flimsy as it gets. He claims he was estranged from Ranya, unaware of her frequent flyer status or the gold she was hauling. Twenty-seven trips in three months, a vehicle from his own home picking her up, and Constable Basavaraj acting on his alleged orders—yet he pleads ignorance? 

ACS Gaurav Gupta’s 200-plus-page report, submitted March 27, 2025, swallows this whole, declaring no “concrete evidence” ties Rao to the smuggling. Really? What does it take—Rao strapping the gold on Ranya himself? Gupta’s clean chit isn’t just a whitewash; it’s a slap in the face to anyone who believes in accountability.

Where is Karnataka’s law heading? Down the drain, if this is the standard. A constable like Basavaraj, entrenched for over 10 years in a sensitive post, shouldn’t be a fixture—he should be rotated to prevent exactly this kind of cozy corruption. A DCP who doesn’t monitor VIP traffic in his jurisdiction isn’t just incompetent; he’s complicit in the chaos. And a DGP who can’t explain why his family exploits his rank while he plays dumb doesn’t deserve the badge. The Karnataka State Police, once a proud institution, is rotting from within, its leaders too busy shielding their own to uphold the law.

This isn’t about one actress or one bust—it’s about a system that’s lost its spine. If Constable Basavaraj can play gatekeeper to a smuggler, if a DCP can’t be bothered with the basics, and if ACS Gupta’s probe can’t see past the old boys’ club, then Karnataka’s law enforcement isn’t just failing—it’s a farce. The public deserves better than this sham of justice. Heads should roll, starting with the DCP’s, and Basavaraj should be in cuffs, not just under scrutiny. Anything less, and the state might as well hang a “For Sale” sign on its police stations.

(The author of this article is a Defence, Aerospace & Political Analyst based in Bengaluru. He is also Director of ADD Engineering Components, India, Pvt. Ltd, a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany. You can reach him at: girishlinganna@gmail.com)

(Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own and do not reflect those of DNA)