Christian Solidarity Worldwide has condemned the murder of Indian Hindu leader Swami Lakhmananda Saraswati on Saturday, and the "horrific" attacks which have been launched against the Christian community in Orissa state by Hindu extremists subsequently.

Naxalites, or Maoist insurgents, have been blamed for the killing of Saraswati and his four associates, but the extremist Hindu group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), of which Saraswati was a local figurehead, has responded by launching a devastating series of attacks on Christian targets, including murders, rape and widespread destruction of property, and publicly inciting further hatred against Christians, says CSW.

Saraswati and his followers were widely implicated in the anti-Christian attacks in Kandhamal district, Orissa, over Christmas 2007.

Dr Joseph D'souza, President of CSW's partner, the All India Christian Council (aicc), said, "We mourn and lament this tragic assault on reason and justice in India. The killing of Saraswati and his associates is deplorable to the Christian community, but the response of the VHP to attack innocent Christians is sickening.

"The government must act now to protect those who are most vulnerable. The current number and distribution of security forces in Orissa is nothing like enough to deal with the problem."

He appealed to the Indian Prime Minister to lead a delegation to meet the victims and called on the international community to speak out on the violence in order to bring peace to the area "where more people will die unless something is done urgently", he said.

CSW Advocacy Director, Tina Lambert, condemned the murder of Saraswati and his associates as well as the "horrific" attacks which have taken place subsequently.

"These incidents send a tragic signal that large parts of Orissa are not under the rule of the law but under mob justice. The killing of Saraswati is an ominous warning that if justice is not done and seen to be done, the people may take matters into their own hands. Ultimately, this will leave the minority Christian community even more vulnerable."

She urged the Indian Government and Orissa state government "to bring a decisive end to the cycle of terrible violence by restoring order and protecting the vulnerable Christian communities who have become the scapegoats".

"The current violence must be urgently brought to an end, and then we will look to the Orissa government to deliver prosecutions of the perpetrators, to compensate the victims properly, and to demonstrate to the world that the rule of law does still apply in India," she said.