A Sikh preacher died yesterday after being wounded in an attack on his temple by a group of fundamentalist Sikhs armed with knives and a handgun, police said. India’s prime minister appealed for calm as riots protesting the deadly shooting spread to several northern Indian cities.
Witnesses said the Vienna temple attended by lower-caste Sikhs had been attacked by Sikhs from a higher caste who accused one or both of the preachers of being disrespectful of the religion’s holy book.
The attack set off a brawl that left 16 people wounded. It was not clear whether some of the weapons used were kirpan — ceremonial daggers that may legally be worn by Sikhs in Austria.
Two preachers — identified by Indian diplomats as Niranjan Das and Sant Rama Nand — underwent operations for gunshot wounds, but Nand died early yesterday, according to a police official who declined to identify himself on the telephone, in line with Austrian custom.
Hundreds in India defied a curfew and army patrols, attacking police stations and torching the car of a senior officer and several trains. In two places police opened fire on mobs, wounding at least four people, senior police officer Khubi Ram said.
The violence in India centered on the northern Insdian city of Jalandhar, a stronghold of the Dera Sach Khand, a Sikh sect comprised of mainly “untouchables,” or Dalits.
Sporadic violence was also reported from several nearby towns, said Sanjiv Kalra, a senior police official at Jalandhar.
Yesterday morning, about 400 soldiers patrolled the area and police set up roadblocks across the city. Initially it appeared that the move had restored calm, but later protests spread to at least five nearby cities.
“Curfew in the entire district has been extended for an indefinite period and five columns of army have been deployed to control the violence,” local government official A.S. Pannu told the Press Trust of India news agency.
Worshiper Mohnder Ram, 72, who has lived in Vienna for decades, said the temple that was attacked had been attended by followers of Shri Guru Ravidas, the 14th-century founder of the sect.
Witnesses said the group of bearded and turbaned men raided the temple as the preachers led several hundred worshippers in prayer. Followers moved to defend their leaders.
“I heard four to five shots” in the temple, Ram said. “People started screaming, children were crying as they ran out. It was like war. There was lots of blood everywhere.”
Six suspects are in custody, including four wounded and in serious condition, police spokesman Michael Takacs said, adding that more may be detained.
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