Bhatkal: Collective body of Jamaats rules against fielding Muslim candidate in assembly elections
Bhatkal: The representatives of collective body of Jamaats, in a meeting led by Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem here on Monday evening, decided not to field a Muslim candidate from Bhatkal in the upcoming Assembly elections.
The decision, however, proves to be a setback to the candidature of Inayatullah Shabandri, president of Tanzeem, who was considered a strong aspirant for the Bhatkal seat.
There had been heated debates regarding the fielding of a Muslim candidate in the constituency this year. There had also been an insistence that the Muslims, who have about 60,000 voters here, should unfailingly support a Muslim candidate.
In the backdrop of such demands and debates, the Tanzeem, which is a sociopolitical organization of Muslims in Bhatkal, called a meeting of collective body of Jamaats representatives here to discuss the issues. The meeting was attended by 48 representatives of various Jamaats, including those of Bhatkal, Shirali, Manki, Murudeshwara, Uppana, Samshi and Honnavar.
After much discussion at the meeting, followed by voting too, the plan to field a Muslim candidate was dropped. Most representatives in the Bhatkal area had supported the plan but a majority of the representatives from the Jamaats of the neighbouring areas had opposed it, as a result of which, it was decided not to give support a Muslim contestant.
The matter is learned to have been discussed earlier in a political affairs committee and executive committee meeting of the Tanzeem, where it was decided unanimously to field a Muslim candidate. When placed before the Sarva Jamaat, however, the decision taken at the Tanzeem meeting lost out.
Inayatullah Shabandri, who had contested the 2013 polls as a JD(S) candidate with the support of the Tanzeem, lost to the Independent candidate Mankalu Vaidya, in spite of getting more than 27,000 votes. The high number of votes he won, however, had fuelled the plan of fielding a Muslim candidate. In 2018, however, the JD(S) denied ticket to Shabandri as the Tanzeem had refused him support.
This year, Shabandri, who had high hopes of contesting and had even readied himself for a fight, is again disappointed with the decision of the Tanzeem. Being the president of the Tanzeem, however, Shabandri is forced to accept the decision of the organization.
The supporters had argued that there was excellent opportunity for a Muslim candidate to win the polls, as BJP legislator Sunil Naik is facing opposition in the party, while there are two factions in the Congress. In addition to such favourable winds, gaining other community members’ votes along with Muslim votes would ensure victory from a Muslim candidate, they argued. The decision in the Tanzeem meeting, however, proved a major setback for the argument.
Following the decision at the meeting, people are curious to find out whom the Tanzeem would support during this year polls.
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CERT-In warns of ‘ghostpairing’ attack targeting whatsApp users, flags high-risk account takeovers
New Delhi: India’s national cybersecurity agency, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), has issued a high-severity alert warning WhatsApp users of an active account takeover campaign using a new technique known as “GhostPairing," in an advisory released on December 19.
CERT-In said cybercriminals are exploiting WhatsApp’s device-linking feature to gain unauthorised access to user accounts without the need for passwords or SIM card swaps, as reported by The Indian Express. The attackers, the agency warned, deceive users into entering pairing codes, which silently grants control of the account to a malicious device.
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According to CERT-In, the GhostPairing method works by tricking victims into approving an attacker’s browser as a trusted linked device. The advisory said, “The attack manipulates users into granting access through a pairing code that appears legitimate." It further added that once access is granted, attackers can fully operate the account through WhatsApp Web.
Last month, the Department of Telecommunications directed messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram to implement continuous SIM binding which required accounts to remain linked to an active SIM card. As part of this directive, companion web sessions are expected to be logged out periodically and re-authenticated using QR codes.
CERT-In said the GhostPairing campaign typically begins with a message appearing to come from a trusted contact, often reading, “Hi, check this photo”. The message contains a link designed to mimic a Facebook-style preview, and clicking the link leads users to a fake verification page, where they are prompted to enter their phone number and a code. Victims unknowingly allow attackers to link their WhatsApp account to an external device, by completing these steps,.
Once compromised, attackers can access messages, photos, videos and voice notes in real time, and can impersonate the victim to send messages to individual contacts or groups, the agency said.
The advisory also noted that WhatsApp currently allows multiple devices to be linked to a single account, a feature that is being misused in such attacks. In October, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs had flagged a related trend involving scammers using social media advertisements to lure users into linking their WhatsApp accounts.
While the government’s SIM-binding push is intended to limit such fraud, it has raised concerns among legal experts and digital rights groups, who argue that constant SIM verification, could affect privacy and disrupt multi-device usage, particularly for professionals.
To reduce risk, CERT-In has urged users to avoid clicking on suspicious links, even if they appear to come from known contacts, and to never enter phone numbers or verification codes on external websites claiming to be linked to WhatsApp or Facebook. Users have also been advised to regularly review the “Linked Devices” section within WhatsApp settings and immediately log out of any unfamiliar sessions.
For organisations relying on WhatsApp for communication, the agency has recommended security awareness training, closer monitoring for phishing attempts, and the establishment of clear response protocols to detect and contain account compromises quickly.
