'Shocked, devastated': Karnataka top cop on stepdaughter Ranya Rao's arrest in gold smuggling case

Ranya rao

Senior IPS officer Ramachandra Rao, whose daughter and Kannada actor Ranya Rao was arrested on Monday night after officials found 14.8kg of gold in her possession, expressed shock over the incident.

Breaking his silence, the Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation DGP said, "I was also shocked and devastated when such an incident came to my notice through the media. I was not aware of any of these things ... Like any other father I was also shocked".

"The law will do its job," he told news agency ANI on Wednesday seeking to distance himself from the matter.

Earlier today, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has recovered gold jewellery worth Rs 2.06 crore and Rs 2.67 crore in cash from Ranya's residence in Bengaluru.

The senior police officer claimed that Ranya has not been living with him. "She is not living with us, she is living separately with her husband, there must be some problem between them due to some family issues," he added.

Ranya is DGP Rao's stepdaughter. The top cop's second wife has two daughters from her first marriage, of whom Ranya Rao is one.

Adding that he doesn't want to speak further on the matter, DGP Rao said, "There is no black mark in my career. I don't want to say anything more".

The DRI arrested Ranya at Bengaluru International Airport on March 3 after she was found in possession of 14.8 kg of gold. According to officials, Rao had arrived from Dubai on an Emirates flight and had been under surveillance due to her frequent international travel.

According to investigators, she had allegedly smuggled the gold by wearing a significant portion of it and concealing gold bars in her clothing.

The actor was produced before a magistrate on Tuesday and remanded to 14-day judicial custody. Officials suspect she is part of a smuggling syndicate operating through Bengaluru airport in recent months. With a total seizure of Rs 17.29 crore, the DRI declared it to be one of the biggest gold smuggling cases at Bengaluru airport.