Calcutta, April 9: The high court, which earlier reined in pandas at Kalighat, leashed those in Tarakeswar today.

The division bench of Justices P.C. Ghosh and B. Somadder said: “The managing committee of the temple is directed not to allow any person to act as priest in the temple without licence issued by its estate.”

The committee was also ordered to “stop extortion from devotees in any manner whatsoever”.

The estate was told to make additional security arrangements, if necessary, to ensure that “no devotee is harassed or troubled by any person in and around the temple”.

The Hooghly police were told to co-operate with the committee to ensure peace in the area and the district magistrate was asked to oversee temple affairs and ensure that there is no extortion from devotees on its premises or outside.

In July last year, the court had restricted entry of unlicensed priests inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Kali temple at Kalighat and issued directives to the temple committee and the state to make the place pilgrim-friendly.

Members of an organisation called the Patha Pradarshak Sangha take devotees to the sanctum sanctorum at Tarakeswar and perform puja on their behalf for money.

The judges said: “We make it clear that if any member of the Sangha wants to help devotees, he must apply before the estate.”

The order followed a suo motu case initiated by former Chief Justice V.S. Sirpurkar after a devotee wrote to him about his experience at the temple. Advocate Narayan Bhattacharya had alleged that he and his wife were harassed and fleeced by members of the Sangha, who accosted them on the way to the temple.