ED seizes 34 crore assets of Ranya & aides in gold smuggling case

NEW DELHI: ED on Friday said it has attached properties worth Rs 34 crore linked to Kannada actor Ranya Rao and her associates in its ongoing gold smuggling and money laundering case.

The case had assumed significance after the actor claimed proximity to a Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara. Premises of the latter were searched by ED in May in connection with the money laundering case.

Later, ED shifted its investigation into the gold smuggling case from Bengaluru to its headquarters in Delhi. The probe unearthed a bigger racket involving several high-profile businessmen and politicians from the state, besides many hawala dealers engaged in laundering the proceeds of crime, now being estimated by the agency at around Rs 56 crore.

The attached properties of the actor are located in Bengaluru and Tumkur districts of Karnataka - a house and a residential plot in Bengaluru; industrial land in Tumkur; and agricultural land in Anekal taluk, with a combined market value of over Rs 34 crore, the agency said.

The 16 premises raided by ED in May included two educational trusts belonging to Parmeshwara. The trustswere found to have footed credit card bills of the actress and other expenses worth Rs 40 lakh. Rao was arrested by Customs and DRI officials on March 3 and over 14 kg gold worth Rs 13 crore was seized.

ED's case is based on an FIR registered by Delhi unit of CBI on a seizure of two consignments of smuggled gold worth Rs 31 crore. Later, during searches at Rao's residence, officials also seized unaccounted cash and gold jewellery.


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