Sajan George, national president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), told AsiaNews that after Nayak accompanied his sister to a place five kilometres from the city he was stopped on his way back by a group of Hindu extremists and vanished thereafter.

Yesterday afternoon around 4 pm some Christian residents from local villages walking along the path Nayak had taken saw some blood and a slipper in a roadside bush.

Aware that a man had disappeared they informed police who came to investigate.

After a brief search by police and the Christians, Nayak’s body was found, lifeless.

Rudangia is a predominantly Christian village, some 260 kilometres from the State capital of Bhubaneshwar

Rudangia was the scene of a lot of violence and was virtually under siege at the height of the campaign of persecution against Christians in Orissa in August and September of last year.

On 30 September a mob of some 3,000 people was able to storm the village, torching houses and the local church.

A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) platoon was dispatched to the village which was turned into a fortress. Christian residents have not dared leave it for fear of attacks.

Despite tight security measures violence has not ebbed in the area. Nayak’s death is the third such incident since 30 October.