The Orissa government on Friday ordered a judicial probe into the communal violence in the tribal-dominated Kandhamal district, which has claimed at least three lives.

Official sources said the probe was ordered by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik who visited the riot-torn area on Thursday to take stock of the situation.

The government would soon name a judge for conducting the probe and lay down the terms and conditions for the purpose, the sources said.

The order came a day after a Christian delegation, led by Archbishop Raphel Chenath, met Patnaik and demanded a CBI investigation into the violent incidents that rocked the tension-ridden district for the last five days.

The Christian communities, which had also favoured a judicial probe into the violence, had alleged that there was a pre-planned conspiracy behind the arson and rioting.

However, the saffron outfits, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, had claimed that violence was a spontaneous reaction to the attack on their leader Swami Laxmanananda Sarswati.

Arson and violence, which sparked off after a clash between two communities on December 24, had claimed at least three lives and left several religious places damaged.