Shivakumar rejects reports linking ministers with gold smuggling case, calls them 'political gossip'
Bengaluru, Mar 10 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivbakumar on Monday rejected reports that claim two ministers have links to the gold smuggling case involving Kannada actress Ranya Rao and termed the reportsa as "political gossips".
He also said that the state government has nothing to do with the case as central agencies are investigating it.
The deputy CM also said, "No minister is involved, we don't know anything. It is all political gossip. Investigating officers will investigate in accordance with the law. We have nothing to do with it," Shivakumar said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, "The central government is investigating, let them do it."
Ranya Rao, 34, was arrested by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on March 3 upon her arrival at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport from Dubai, and gold bars worth Rs 12.56 crore were seized from her.
The next day, the DRI said it seized gold jewellery worth Rs 2.06 crore and cash amounting to Rs 2.67 from her residence in Bengaluru.
Ranya is the stepdaughter of K Ramachandra Rao, a DGP-ranked police officer presently serving as Chairman and Managing Director of the Karnataka State Police Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered an FIR in this case.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
