KOCHI: The police have booked a woman who allegedly duped a Palluruthy native of gold ornaments and cash after promising to end the latter’s problems by performing rituals that will bring good fortune to the family.
The Palluruthy police on Wednesday registered a cheating case against Usha, 45, of Rameshwaram, Palluruthy, who allegedly claimed she has the ‘blessings of god’. The case was registered based on a complaint lodged by Nimmi A J.
According to police, the accused has been engaged in performing various rituals for the past several years.
“Two years ago, Nimmi came to know about Usha, who claims that she has received the ‘blessings of god’. The complainant had personal and financial issues and she approached Usha, who promised to help her,” said a police officer.
According to the complaint, the woman demanded money and gold ornaments from Nimmi for performing the rituals, “which would help her family get god’s blessing and resolve the issues”. “In the name of rituals, the accused took Rs 2.35 lakh and 5.75 sovereigns of gold from Nimmi on various occasions. However, the situation of Nimmi and her family remained the same even after rituals were performed,” a police officer said.
Last month, Nimmi approached the suspect and demanded to return all the money and ornaments.
However, Usha refused to return them. Following this, Nimmi lodged a complaint with the police.
The case was registered under IPC section 406 for criminal breach of trust and 420 for cheating. According to the police, Usha will be summoned for interrogation. Police are also checking whether other persons had approached Usha for rituals.