Police arrested the slaughterer and several others and registered a case against them for sacrificing more than 70 goats and sheep at Panchubarahi shrine in Satabhaya village under Rajnagar block here on the occasion of Chaitra Purnima on Thursday.
Rajnagar police station IIC Mrutyunjaya Swain stated that a criminal case has been registered against slaughterer Dhaneswar Samal and a few others in connection with the gory act of animal sacrifice, which was a clear defiance of the prohibition on animal killing at temples.
According to SP Sarthak Sarangi, an inquiry on the alleged participation by police personnel during the animal sacrifice has been started. Notably, as per a long continuing tradition, even the police used to send animal to be slaughtered at the temple during the fest every year. The presentation of the police is known as ‘Kotha Bali’ (the first animal sacrifice).
Though earlier wildlife activists and police personnel had created an awareness to stop killing of animals at the shrine, the locals disobeyed the order, sources said.