Bhubaneswar, July 27 - A fast-track court in Orissa Monday sentenced five people to six years in jail for their involvement in the last year's communal violence in the state's Kandhamal district, a government lawyer said.

'Sobhan Kumar Das, the additional sessions judge at the fast-track court at Phulbani - the district headquarter of Kandhamal - sentenced Disara Kanhar, Durbasa Kanhar, Gupteswar Kanhar, Rabindra Kanhar and Naresh Kanhar each to six years of rigorous imprisonment and ordered them to pay a fine of Rs.5,000 each,' special public prosecutor Bijoy Krishna Pattnaik told IANS.

'If they fail to pay the fine, they will have to undergo another six months of rigorous imprisonment,' Pattnaik said citing the court order, adding that the court pronounced the sentence after examining eight witnesses.

More than a 100 people Sep 13 last year caused damage to the house of Subash Digal and set fire to houses of nine other people at Salaguda village, 41 km from the district headquarter of Phulbani. On Sep 14 Digal reported the matter at the local Gochhapada police station.

Police submitted the charge sheet about six months ago against about 30 people of the same village, including seven people who were on trial.