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Dabwali, Haryana: Curfew was imposed in a town in Haryana's Sirsa district on Friday after a Sikh man was killed by Dera Sacha Sauda sect followers in a clash.
Sikh activists set ablaze 15 shops and 10 houses belonging to the Dera sect followers in Dabwali town after the Sikh man was killed last morning.
Trouble started after some people tried to stop a prayer meeting of the Dera followers in this town on the border of Punjab and Haryana, about 350km from state capital Chandigarh. Dera followers retaliated by throwing stones and in the ensuing violence, a Sikh activist, Mandar Singh, was killed. Police said he had sustained a head injury.
The death triggered retaliatory violence by the Sikh community as they set fire to several establishments belonging to Dera followers.
District officials rushed police reinforcements to the spot to maintain law and order. The police were put on alert in Sirsa town, where the headquarters of the sect led by Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh is located.
Gurmit Ram Rahim has been involved in a controversy with the Sikh community since May last year after he attired himself like the 10th Sikh guru, Gobind Singh, during a religious ceremony. This led to violence in Punjab and Haryana and several other states.
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