Thousands attend funeral of slain sect leader in India 00000401749051, others available (Roundup)

Jun 4, 2009, 13:01 GMT

   New Delhi - A leader of an Indian Sikh sect whose death in an attack in a Vienna temple triggered widespread violence in India's northern state of Punjab was cremated Thursday with full state honours amid tight security.

   The body of Sant Rama Nand was taken to the headquarters of the Dera Sach Khand sect at Ballan, near central Jalandhar city, on a special flight from Vienna for the last rites.

   Thousands of followers of the religious sect from Punjab and other parts of India paid homage to the leader, whose body, draped in a saffron cloth, was kept in a glass coffin at Ballan.

   Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati and senior Indian politicians were present at the funeral.

   Besides Jalandhar, which is 150 kilometres north-west of the state capital, Chandigarh, other towns and cities across Punjab were on high alert from Wednesday night in view of the cremation.

   Contingents of police and paramilitary forces were deployed in large numbers in and around the headquarters of the sect, which issued an appeal to its followers to maintain peace and harmony.

   Sixteen people, including Dera Sach Khand chief Niranjan Dass, were injured in the Vienna attack. It sparked violent unrest in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana state that claimed three lives and left dozens injured.

   Dass, who spent spent time in hospital recovering from gunshot wounds he suffered in the May 24 attack, also returned home on the same flight as the body of Sant Rama Nand.

   Police said they believe they have caught the six Indian-born attackers but so far they have have not been able to determine the exact background of the incident.

   Mainstream Sikhs often consider sects such as Dera Sach Khand to deviate from their true religion and practices, even though they share some teachings.