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Austria's Deadly Sikh Clash Sparks Unrest in India

A deadly attack on two preachers in a Sikh temple in Austria has sparked unrest in India. The guru Sant Rama Nand fell victim to assailants wielding a gun and knives. Police have imposed a curfew in the city of Jalandhar after overnight violence.

A violent clash between rival Sikh groups in Austria has enflamed tensions in far-away northern India. Police imposed a curfew in the northern city of Jalandhar on Monday following overnight rioting in towns across the state of Punjab.

AP

Followers of a Dalit Sikh guru protest in northern India on Monday.

The incident occurred as two gurus from a sect representing low-caste Sikhs were preaching to a crowd estimated to have been between 150 and 300. Witnesses said that the perpetrators were fundamentalist Sikhs from a higher caste who accused one or both of the preachers of being disrespectful of the Sikh holy book.

Witnesses said that a group of six bearded and turbaned men launched the attack. One was armed with a gun and the other five with knives. The two preachers, Sant Rama Nand and Niranjan Das were shot and Nand died of his wounds early on Monday morning while Das is described as being in a stable condition.

Mohnder Ram, a 72-year-old worshipper at the temple, said that he heard four or five shots. "People started screaming … it was like war," he told the Associated Press news agency on Sunday. Another witness, Nermal Singh, who was slightly injured during the fracas, told AP: "Everybody was praying and then it started with the knives and a pistol."

400 Soldiers in Jalandhar

It was not clear if the knives used in the attack were kirpans, the ceremonial daggers carried by Sikhs, which may legally be worn in Austria. Police spokesman Michael Takacs told reporters that six suspects are in custody, including four who are seriously wounded. The worshippers in the temple are reported to have overpowered the attackers and disarmed them.

The temple, which is located in the working class Vienna-Rudolfsheim district, was established in 2005 by followers of Shiri Guru Ravidas, the 14th-century founder of the Dera Sach Khand sect comprised mainly of "untouchables" or Dalits. The temple has campaigned against the caste system which remains popular among Sikhs although it is not officially recognized by Sikhism.

Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded in 15th-century Punjab by Guru Nanak. It is the fifth-largest organized relgion in the world and is centered in the state of Punjab. Turmoil in the state erupted in the 1980s, marked most dramatically be the storming of the Golden Temple at Amritsar by the Indian Army in 1984. Then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's Sikh bodyguards assassinated her in revenge.

In Vienna this weekend, the Sikh factions involved seemed equally bent on retribution. Rival temples were reported to have threatened violence if the gurus appeared at the temple on Sunday. Police spokesman Takacs denied reports that the temple leaders had asked for protection after telephone threats last week. Indian media is reporting that the attackers were incensed that one of the preachers was given a ceremonial shawl considered a high Sikh honor.

Although caste discrimination has been outlawed in India for more than half a century, the system remains pervasive in India, dividing people into hundreds of different groups. Sikhs make up just 2 percent of India's nearly 1.2 billion people, while there are estimated to be only around 3,000 Sikhs in Austria.

There are several similar Deras or sects across the northern Indian state of Punjab but violent clashes are rare. However on Sunday thousands of Dera Sach Khand followers and other Dalit organizations took to the streets to protest against the deadly attack in Austria. The police said that rioters torched a train, vehicles and shops and that there was sporadic violence in several nearby towns.

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, first Sikh to occupy India's highest political office, appealed for calm on Monday. "I am deeply distressed by the outbreak of violence in Punjab following certain incidents in Vienna, Austria," he said, in quotes cited in The Times of India Web site on Monday. "I appeal to all sections of the people in Punjab to abjure violence and maintain peace."

Around 400 soldiers are reported to be patrolling the city of Jalandhar on Monday and roadblocks have been erected. "The situation remains tense but under control," a senior superintendent of police R.K Jaiswal told Reuters.

smd -- with wire reports

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