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<div class="itg-mosimage"><amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1985July%2Fsacrifice-1_052713044640.jpg" alt="" height="425" width="650" class="" layout="responsive"></amp-img>Blood-stains on the temple walls<p>The land of Orissa is dotted with many a temple and shrine, and the people of the state are justifiably proud of their deep-rooted religious traditions. School history texts abound with tales of the piety that existed here in the golden days of yore.</p><p>But last fortnight that religious fervour showed its darker and more gruesome side. On Rajasankranti day (June 15) three teen aged boys were enticed to a shrine to Durga atop a steep hill near Ranpur, 75 km west of Bhubaneswar, where they were brutally killed and their blood offered in a misguided attempt to propitiate the goddess.</p><p>The ritual sacrifice and triple murder sent waves of shock and indignation across the state and throughout the country. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi sought a report on the inhuman act, and police and local authorities were trying their best to find the culprits. </p><p>"But we are still groping in the dark as to who could have done it," admitted S. Roy, the crime branch official who was conducting the investigations in Ranpur. However, Roy as well as local police and the people of the area agreed that it was a clear case of human sacrifice in its crudest form - the children had their heads crushed with sharp rocks at the foot of the idol.</p><p>The night of blood began with the villagers of Ranpur, men, women and children gathered on the lawns of the Maninag temple to watch a <i>jatra</i>, a suspense-packed drama about a king and his queen being mesmerised by a tantrik. The villagers held their breath as the tantrik prepared to sacrifice the couple in order to gain glory for himself. But this story of sacrifice had a happy ending - the king's soldiers turned up and slew the wicked tantrik.</p><div class="itemcenter"><amp-iframe height="62" title="" width="320" sandbox="allow-forms allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-top-navigation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" allowfullscreen src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014%5Cu0026native%3D1" class="mrBt15 preferred-source-banner"> </amp-iframe></div></p><p>Meanwhile, the true horror show was taking place, for it was at this time that the three boys. Radhamohan Barik, Akhay Kumar Barik, and Jalandhar Barik were enticed away to their gory deaths.</p><p>Sanatan Barik, father of one of the victims, recalled that when the boys did not turn up till late in the night a search was begun. But no one suspected ritualistic murder. It was only the next morning that one Laxmidhar Maharana, son of Guna Maharana, reported sighting three bodies scattered in the bushes at the hilltop near the shrine. </p><div class="itg-mosimage"><amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1985July%2Fsacrifice-2_052713044640.jpg" alt="" height="425" width="650" class="" layout="responsive"></amp-img>Sacrifice victim</div></p><p>Police soon arrived and recovered the bodies. Blood-stains at the door of the temple and the pedestal of the deity, however told the gruesome story clearly enough. All the circumstantial and material evidence gathered by the police at the spot of the crime and the post-mortem examination reports suggest the three children were taken to the hilltop on some pretext by a group of people and dragged inside the shrine.</p><p>The children must have resisted then, as broken bangles and scattered bits of cloth found on the site suggest. They were throttled and then their heads crushed either with rocks or against the wall so their blood could drip at the feet of the godess.</p><p>Under interrogation Guna Maharana told the police that he and his son had gone to the temple the morning after the <i>jatra</i> to offer puja there. Doubts were expressed about Maharana's statement as the hilltop temple is rarely visited by devotees these days due to its difficult location. </p><p>The doubts turned into suspicion when police dogs led the investigators to Maharana's house. Said Sanat Barik: "We did not suspect anyone in the village till the police dogs reached Maharana's house. But I wonder why he would do it since there is no enmity between us."</p><p>Guna Maharana is in police custody while being questioned. But his son Rabi Maharana is absconding. The officer in charge of the Ranpur police station, B.B. Sahoo, says that he suspected Rabi's involvement in the crime as a piece of cloth found at the site had his name on it. </p><p>Local people felt that since the Maharana family had been going through rather hard times they might have tried to sacrifice to the goddess for prosperity. But the police have yet to make a breakthrough in the case even though over 50 people have been questioned.</p><p>There are many legends of human sacrifice in the area. Villagers say the raja of the erstwhile Ranpur princely state used to sacrifice people secretly, though none of them claims to have witnessed the deed. Tales still make the rounds of people maintained by rajas expressly for sacrifice who were well looked after, as well as of a community of throat cutters. But the police say since Independence not a single case of human sacrifice has come to light.</p><p>However, suspicion lurks that many cases of alleged suicide and murder - three severed heads were found in Puri last year - were actually ritual sacrifices, disguised to seem like a more ordinary form of mayhem.</p><p>But tantrism and witchcraft are showing signs of a revival among the superstitious and largely backward villagers, and the degenerate form of Hinduism which was prevalent in the area a century ago could be gaining ground.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">AtMigration </div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Dec 23, 2013</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div></div>

crime stories

CRIME

<div class="itg-mosimage"><div class="itgimage"><img  title=""  class="" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1985July%2Fsacrifice-1_052713044640.jpg" loading="lazy" /></div>Blood-stains on the temple walls<p>The land of Orissa is dotted with many a temple and shrine, and the people of the state are justifiably proud of their deep-rooted religious traditions. School history texts abound with tales of the piety that existed here in the golden days of yore.</p><p>But last fortnight that religious fervour showed its darker and more gruesome side. On Rajasankranti day (June 15) three teen aged boys were enticed to a shrine to Durga atop a steep hill near Ranpur, 75 km west of Bhubaneswar, where they were brutally killed and their blood offered in a misguided attempt to propitiate the goddess.</p><p>The ritual sacrifice and triple murder sent waves of shock and indignation across the state and throughout the country. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi sought a report on the inhuman act, and police and local authorities were trying their best to find the culprits. </p><p>"But we are still groping in the dark as to who could have done it," admitted S. Roy, the crime branch official who was conducting the investigations in Ranpur. However, Roy as well as local police and the people of the area agreed that it was a clear case of human sacrifice in its crudest form - the children had their heads crushed with sharp rocks at the foot of the idol.</p><p>The night of blood began with the villagers of Ranpur, men, women and children gathered on the lawns of the Maninag temple to watch a <i>jatra</i>, a suspense-packed drama about a king and his queen being mesmerised by a tantrik. The villagers held their breath as the tantrik prepared to sacrifice the couple in order to gain glory for himself. But this story of sacrifice had a happy ending - the king's soldiers turned up and slew the wicked tantrik.</p><div class="itemcenter"><iframe scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="62" awidth="320" aheight="62" amplayout="fixed" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014" class="preferred-source-banner" loading="lazy"></iframe></div><style>.preferred-source-banner{  margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}</style></p><p>Meanwhile, the true horror show was taking place, for it was at this time that the three boys. Radhamohan Barik, Akhay Kumar Barik, and Jalandhar Barik were enticed away to their gory deaths.</p><p>Sanatan Barik, father of one of the victims, recalled that when the boys did not turn up till late in the night a search was begun. But no one suspected ritualistic murder. It was only the next morning that one Laxmidhar Maharana, son of Guna Maharana, reported sighting three bodies scattered in the bushes at the hilltop near the shrine. </p><div class="itg-mosimage"><div class="itgimage"><img  title=""  class="" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1985July%2Fsacrifice-2_052713044640.jpg" loading="lazy" /></div>Sacrifice victim</div></p><p>Police soon arrived and recovered the bodies. Blood-stains at the door of the temple and the pedestal of the deity, however told the gruesome story clearly enough. All the circumstantial and material evidence gathered by the police at the spot of the crime and the post-mortem examination reports suggest the three children were taken to the hilltop on some pretext by a group of people and dragged inside the shrine.</p><p>The children must have resisted then, as broken bangles and scattered bits of cloth found on the site suggest. They were throttled and then their heads crushed either with rocks or against the wall so their blood could drip at the feet of the godess.</p><p>Under interrogation Guna Maharana told the police that he and his son had gone to the temple the morning after the <i>jatra</i> to offer puja there. Doubts were expressed about Maharana's statement as the hilltop temple is rarely visited by devotees these days due to its difficult location. </p><p>The doubts turned into suspicion when police dogs led the investigators to Maharana's house. Said Sanat Barik: "We did not suspect anyone in the village till the police dogs reached Maharana's house. But I wonder why he would do it since there is no enmity between us."</p><p>Guna Maharana is in police custody while being questioned. But his son Rabi Maharana is absconding. The officer in charge of the Ranpur police station, B.B. Sahoo, says that he suspected Rabi's involvement in the crime as a piece of cloth found at the site had his name on it. </p><p>Local people felt that since the Maharana family had been going through rather hard times they might have tried to sacrifice to the goddess for prosperity. But the police have yet to make a breakthrough in the case even though over 50 people have been questioned.</p><p>There are many legends of human sacrifice in the area. Villagers say the raja of the erstwhile Ranpur princely state used to sacrifice people secretly, though none of them claims to have witnessed the deed. Tales still make the rounds of people maintained by rajas expressly for sacrifice who were well looked after, as well as of a community of throat cutters. But the police say since Independence not a single case of human sacrifice has come to light.</p><p>However, suspicion lurks that many cases of alleged suicide and murder - three severed heads were found in Puri last year - were actually ritual sacrifices, disguised to seem like a more ordinary form of mayhem.</p><p>But tantrism and witchcraft are showing signs of a revival among the superstitious and largely backward villagers, and the degenerate form of Hinduism which was prevalent in the area a century ago could be gaining ground.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">AtMigration </div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Dec 23, 2013</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div></div>

The ritual sacrifice and triple murder sent waves of shock and indignation across Orissa and throughout the country.

India Today

The land of Orissa is dotted with many a temple and shrine, and the people of the state are justifiably proud of their deep-rooted religious traditions.

Orissa: Bloody sacrifice - India Today

Human sacrifice in Orissa sends shock waves across the state, throughout India

Orissa: Bloody sacrifice

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The Tamil Nadu government will move an Assembly resolution opposing the VBGRAMG Bill

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Delhi logged its warmest January day in seven years, with the maximum temperature touching 27.1 degrees Celsius, 6.8 notches above normal. The weatherman has forecast thunderstorms with rain for Friday.

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Mumbai Crime Branch has taken gangster Ravi Pujari into custody in an extortion case linked to Remo D’Souza, involving Rs 5 crore threats tied to a long-running film production dispute.

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A pastor was allegedly beaten and paraded by a mob in Odisha’s Dhenkanal over conversion suspicion. After his wife’s complaint, police detained four people and launched a detailed investigation.

A pastor was allegedly beaten and publicly humiliated by a mob in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district over conversion claims

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Twenty people, including women and children, were left stranded 75 feet above the ground after an amusement ride malfunctioned at an exhibition held at Codissia Grounds in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore. The incident occurred on Tuesday night when around 20 visitors, including three children, were stuck on the ride, prompting police and the Fire and Rescue Department to respond. Using a sky lift vehicle, the rescue team worked for roughly 45 minutes to safely bring everyone down. The incident has raised safety concerns, following a similar case in Chennai last year where visitors were left stranded on an amusement ride, highlighting the need for periodic inspections and strict safety checks of such attractions.

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Human sacrifice in Orissa sends shock waves across the state, throughout India

The ritual sacrifice and triple murder sent waves of shock and indignation across Orissa and throughout the country.

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