FACTBOX - Religious clashes in Orissa

Reuters - The murder of a Hindu religious leader in Orissa has sparked violent clashes between Hindus and Christians that have killed at least 11 people this week.

Here are some facts on religious tensions between Christians and Hindus in Orissa.

HISTORY OF VIOLENCE:

* In 1999, a Hindu mob killed Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons by burning them in their car. Staines had been in Orissa since 1965.

* In 2007, violence between Hindus and Christians in Orissa erupted on Christmas Eve with Hindu hardliners burning and damaging 14 churches and killing at least one person. A local Hindu group claimed that Christians had also damaged at least three Hindu temples during the clashes.

* Human Rights Watch said last year that extremist Hindu groups in Orissa have been conducting an anti-Christian campaign for years, while government officials have looked the other way.

CAUSES:

* The issue of religion conversion is highly charged in India where Hindu hardliners accuse Christian priests of forcibly converting Hindus to Christianity.