On January 5, India's Supreme Court ruled that it would not allow persecution of minorities and asked the Orissa state government to resign if it was unable to protect Christians who were targeted in the riots that followed the murder of Swami Laxmanananda, a local leader of the radical Hindu movement Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP).
The Supreme Court followed up the opinion with an order to Orissa's government to take all measures to protect minorities.
This move is welcomed by Christian organizations in India.
A bench comprising Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Justice Markandey Katju and Justice P. Sathasivam also asked the government, led by the Hindu BJD party, to rebuild the churches damaged in the violence.
"We will not accept the persecution of the minorities. If the state government is unable to protect them, it should resign. We must protect the minorities... No minority community should feel unsafe in this country," said Justice Katju.
"It is the duty of the state government to protect the minority community. You (the state) have done this only after 50,000 people from the minority community fled into the jungles," he said.
The Court, which in October last year had issued a directive to deploy paramilitary forces in the troubled areas until the end of December in view of Christmas, asked the government not to decide unilaterally on the withdrawal of these forces.
The court was hearing a petition by the Archbishop of Cuttack, Raphel Cheenath, seeking the intervention of police forces sent by the central government to curb inter-communal violence that erupted in Kandhamal district of Orissa against Christians after Swami Laxmanananda was gunned down on August 23, 2008 at his ashram (a retreat center).