Indian PM demands end to anti-Christian riots

Posted 09 2 2008 9:08AM

NEW DELHI (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked eastern Orissa state to stamp out anti-Christian rioting and punish those responsible for murder and arson, officials said Monday.

Singh broke his silence over the violence that erupted after the August 23 murder of a popular Hindu leader by unknown gunmen in Orissa's impoverished Kandhamal district.

An official statement in New Delhi said Singh had spoken with Orissa Chief Minister Navin Patnaik.

"The central government has taken a very serious notice of the happenings in Orissa and he has personally spoken to the chief minister to ensure communal harmony and bring to book the culprits behind the violent incidents," it said.

The violence has drawn condemnation from the pope and the Italian government.

Singh also promised financial aid to the victims of the anti-Christian clashes, the deadliest in recent years in India.

"The central government will provide assistance to family members of persons who have lost their lives and those victims who have been permanently incapacitated in the incidents in Orissa," the statement said.

"In addition, a package of assistance to the people who have suffered in the incidents, including those rendered destitute and homeless and support for repair of houses damaged, including orphanages, will be provided," it added.

The assurance came as Orissa police inspector general R.P. Singh Monday put the number of those killed in the riots at 16, two more than earlier reported by the state administration.

The Press Trust of India reported sporadic violence but said a curfew imposed in Kandhamal was relaxed on Monday.

About 200 people have been arrested in connection with the riots and 13,000 others, mostly Christians, are sheltering under police guard in seven camps in Kandhamal.

Thousands of others have also fled to the jungles after their homes, churches and prayer halls were torched.

Christians account for 2.3 percent of India's billion-plus population.

Hindu radicals accuse missionaries of luring poor tribals and low-caste Hindus to convert to Christianity by offering free education and health care.