‘Kulur Ustad’ arrested for cheating, sexually harassing woman under guise of removing black magic
Mangaluru: The Mangaluru Women's Police Station has arrested a man from Hejamady on charges of cheating a woman suffering from depression by sexually harassing her and deceiving her of Rs. 1 lakh under the pretext of treating her for black magic and spiritual afflictions.
The arrested accused has been identified as G. Abdul Karim alias Kulur Ustad, a resident of Guruvayankare.
According to police sources, in 2022, the victim was suffering from depression and, on the advice of her sister's husband, had gone to the house of Ustad Abdul Karim, who was then residing in Hejamady. It is said that there, Abdul Karim, also known as Kulur Ustad, saw the woman and told her that someone had cast a spell on her, and that she needed to undergo a ritual to get rid of it.
Abdul Karim had allegedly asked the woman to visit frequently, promising to cure her of black magic. The woman visited him several times, often accompanied by her elder sister. She informed the police that he had recited verses from the Quran to her during these visits.
However, on February 10, 2022, she went alone as her elder sister had other commitments. During that visit, the Ustad recited the Quran to her but then allegedly molested her under the pretext of treatment and took ₹55,000 from her, according to the complaint she filed with the police.
The victim also alleged in her complaint to the police that Ustad deceived her by claiming that the cost of her treatment would increase each time she visited Hejamady. As a result, she was allegedly cheated out of approximately ₹1 lakh.
It has been learnt that there are multiple complaints against the man, alleging that he cheated and harassed several others in a similar manner, posing as a Ustad who could remove black magic. Reports suggest that he misled people into believing that they needed to follow his instructions to protect their families from black magic, and under this pretext, he also physically harassed them.
Balakrishna Nayak, Inspector of the Mangaluru Women's Police Station, has registered a case in connection with the incident and is currently leading the investigation.
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'Operation Sindoor 2.0 seems inevitable as Pakistan fixated on Kashmir issue with Chinese support'
Gandhinagar (PT): Lieutenant General Dushyant Singh (retd) on Sunday said the Indian armed forces must remain prepared as "Operation Sindoor 2.0" is inevitable, mainly because Pakistan's military remains fixated on the Kashmir issue with support from China and Turkiye.
Singh said the "ceasefire" during Operation Sindoor in May remains “fragile” due to repeated violations by Pakistan on the Line of Control (LoC).
He also highlighted the need to improve narrative-building capabilities by India, which he described as one of the shortcomings during the military operation.
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Singh, Director General of the New Delhi-based think tank Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), was addressing a gathering at the headquarters of the Indian Air Force’s South Western Air Command (SWAC) near Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
His address was part of the ninth edition of the Late Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon (PVC) Annual Memorial Lecture, organised by the Air Force Association, Gujarat Branch.
"Operation Sindoor was not the end, but it was the beginning of new dynamics of escalation management. So, what are the chances of any future conflict with our adversary? The answer is yes. 'Operation Sindoor 2.0' is not merely a possibility; it is inevitable. The earlier we prepare for it, the better we are," said Singh.
He added that the likelihood of another 'Operation Sindoor' remains high as Pakistan’s military continues to remain fixated on the Kashmir issue, with backing from China and Turkiye.
Singh, however, expressed confidence in the Indian government’s ability to deal with future threats.
"One of the successes of Operation Sindoor was the doctrinal shift. It discarded restraint and exposed Pakistan's weaknesses. For the first time since the 1971 war, a tri-service synergy was achieved. Political clarity translated into military precision, air defence innovation, and surprised global observers," said Singh.
Operation Sindoor was India's swift, targeted military response in May 2025 to a major terrorist attack in Pahalgam, aiming to destroy terrorist infrastructure and launchpads inside Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
Highlighting shortcomings, Singh said India was weak in international narrative management.
"Diplomatic missions were not briefed aggressively, and pro-India lobbies abroad remained under-utilised. Narrative warfare was not fully leveraged. This is a gap we cannot afford in the future," the retired Army officer said.
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He noted that Pakistani social media influencers flooded platforms such as TikTok, with amplification support from Chinese social media networks, and even targeted youth audiences in Bangladesh.
Singh also pointed to intense cyber warfare during the four-day operation.
"Cyber attacks on India were heavy during the four days of Operation Sindoor, but our counter-offensive cyber operations were either not clearly articulated or we were not aware of them," he said.
Singh said cyber attacks on government networks had surged sevenfold during the four-day period.
"The power sector witnessed nearly two lakh cyber attacks, while the National Stock Exchange faced around 40 crore cyber attacks. Had any been successful, it could have triggered a financial crisis," he said.
Singh emphasised that modern conflicts extend beyond land, sea and air, underscoring that multi-domain warfare is now a reality.
"We need coordinated information propagation during conflicts. On the information warfare front, Chinese media were deeply engaged in data analysis and crafting messages to amplify India’s fault lines," he said.
He recommended codifying a "national security strategy.
"India needs a well-documented national security strategy. We also need to reform intelligence and internal security, fast-track the integrated theatre command, raise defence spending by 3 per cent of the GDP, excluding pensions, and focus on outcome-based budgeting, not process-driven," the retired officer said.
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Singh also called for the creation of dedicated Cyber Warfare and Cognitive Warfare Commands, and stressed the need to overhaul India’s strategic communications.
"We need to mend India's strategic communication for better narrative building. Siloed messaging by agencies such as the MEA and MoD led to delayed rebuttals during the operation, which amplified Pakistan’s narrative. These things are equally important because they affect India's overall image.
"Weak technology integration failed to counter viral claims about Indian jets. We must deploy AI for disinformation tracking and engage the 32 million-strong Indian diaspora as narrative amplifiers," Singh added.
Air Vice Marshal Anil Golani (retd), Director General of the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS), spoke about the relevance of air power and the future of the Indian Air Force.
He said Operation Sindoor was a strategic shift from restraint to "deterrence by punishment".
Claiming that Pakistan's aggressive moves against India during the military conflict exposed collusion between China and Pakistan, Golani said China used the conflict to test its weapons. PTI PJT NSK
