Devotees at the Dakshina Kali temple at Biragovindpur near Puri on Wednesday. Picture by Sarat Patra

Bhubaneswar/Jajpur, Oct. 27: More than 150 goats were slaughtered today at the Dakshina Kali shrines at Katrapur and Bhuinpur villages in Jajpur district despite ban on animal sacrifice by the district administration.

However, the Puri district administration has succeeded in stopping mass animal sacrifice at the Dakshina Kali temple near the pilgrim town.

“Animal sacrifice performed by the devotees on the night of Kali puja has been stopped this year,” Puri district collector Fakir Charan Satpathy told The Telegraph. He, however, admitted that sacrifice of two animals was performed for the ritual’s sake.

Activists of six organisations had staged a dharna in front of the temple urging the administration and the people to stop the practice.

“We welcome the steps taken by the district administration to stop animal sacrifice in mass scale,” said Krushna Chandra Jagdev, president of the Pujya Puja Sansad, which led the dharna.

However, Laxmikanta Nanda, legal heir of the founder of Dakshina Kali temple, said there was ritual sacrifice of three animals on behalf of the founder’s family, villagers and the priest.

As many as 114 goats were sacrificed at the Dakshina Kali altar at Katrapur alone, eyewitnesses said.

The ritual, which began in the forenoon, continued for about one-and-a-half hours. Goats were made lined up on the altar. The temple managing committee, however, said it had no role to play in the ritual.

“People came on their own and offered sacrifices. We neither support nor oppose it,” said president of the Dakshina Kali puja committee Niranjan Das. District collector Anil Kumar Samal said: “As we were busy in the flood-hit areas, we could not concentrate on the issue. The district administration will take all steps to stop animal sacrifice from the next year.”

Moreover, 36 goats were sacrificed at the Kali temple at Bhuinpur today, 2km away from the Dakshina Kali altar at Katrapur.

A Pipili-based social organisation, India Media Centre, had sought intervention of Orissa High Court through a PIL to stop the practice.

The high court had left it for the district administration to take appropriate steps.

The temple had hit the headlines in 2007, when more than 1,200 goats were offered as sacrifice reportedly in the presence of local administration, local MLA and MPs.