Army troops have been deployed in Nagrasu town of Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag district, where a standoff between the administration and a group of Nihangs at a gurudwara continued for over 40 hours on Monday, officials said.
Around six Nihangs, armed with spears and swords, climbed onto the roof of the gurudwara at around 4 pm on Saturday and have remained there since, demanding the release of four Nihangs arrested in connection with a clash in Karnaprayag in Chamoli district on June 16.
The four were arrested after allegedly injuring some locals with swords during the clash.
The gurudwara, located between Rudraprayag and Gauchar, is frequented by Sikh pilgrims travelling to and from Hemkund Sahib.
Police and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel remain deployed at the site and are trying to persuade the Nihangs to come down. According to police, those on the roof are carrying spears, swords, axes and kirpans (ceremonial daggers).
Earlier, Rudraprayag Superintendent of Police Niharika Tomar had said negotiations were continuing.
"The talks have yielded positive results. One of the Nihangs has come down from the roof to speak with the administration and police officials, and dialogue with the remaining Nihangs is ongoing," she had said.
While Tomar denied reports of any hostage situation, gurudwara caretaker Sardar Beant Singh claimed that one person was briefly held hostage before being released.
Rudraprayag district magistrate Vishal Mishra said the Hemkund Sahib pilgrimage was proceeding peacefully and that regular activities at the gurudwara, including 'ardas' and 'langar', were continuing uninterrupted. He also appealed to people not to pay heed to rumours.
Dismissing reports linking the standoff to the Karnaprayag clash, Garhwal Inspector General Rajiv Swaroop said, "The incident initially began as a dispute between the Nihang devotees and the management of the gurdwara where they were having langar. Following the argument, the management dialed 112, prompting an immediate response from the police. Upon seeing the police, some of the Nihang devotees panicked and locked themselves on the rooftop of the building. Multiple rounds of dialogue were held with them. This is primarily an internal dispute between the gurdwara management and the visiting Nihang devotees, and notably, the management members also belong to the Nihang community."
"Our District Magistrate (DM) and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) rushed to the spot, held talks, and counselled them. The situation is now completely peaceful. We are actively investigating the circumstances under which rumours were spread on social media, falsely linking this incident to the previous clash in Karnaprayag. This misinformation was intentionally created to cause confusion and with the malicious intent of disrupting the Char Dham and Hemkund Sahib Yatras. A thorough probe is underway, and strict legal action will be taken against those responsible."
