Bengaluru, April 22 -- The Karnataka high court Monday questioned why actor Ranya Rao, who is presently in judicial custody following her arrest in an alleged case of gold smuggling, was granted VIP protocol and police escort at the Bengaluru airport, which allegedly helped her evade security checks on the several alleged trips she took to Dubai for smuggling activities.

Justice S Vishwajith Shetty, who was hearing arguments on the bail application filed by the arrested actor, questioned the counsel of Rao, and the counsel for the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the prosecuting authority in the case, why Rao had access to such VIP protocol despite the general understanding that police escort is not extended to everyone.

The j...