Chandigarh, June 27: More than 150 Nihang Singhs have established a temporary camp at Gurdwara Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh, declaring their refusal to return to Punjab until four arrested comrades are released by Uttarakhand authorities. The decision follows a tense standoff at the interstate border, which has been temporarily paused after discussions between the administration and the group.
The dispute stems from a June 16 violent clash between local residents and a group of Nihangs at the Karanprayag market in Chamoli, Uttarakhand, which left several individuals injured. Following the altercation, local police registered a criminal case and detained four members of the Nihang sect.
Jatha leader Jagdeep Singh Akali affirmed that the planned protest march into the neighboring state remains suspended for forty-eight hours to allow officials to address the issue.
“The Uttarakhand administration has asked for two days to fulfill their demands, hence the plan for a protest march in Uttarakhand has been suspended for the next two days,” Jagdeep Singh Akali declared.
The decision brings a brief window of calm after a Nihang jatha attempted to forcefully enter Uttarakhand through Dehradun on Thursday. Large police deployments intercepted the group, leading to a clash as members tried to break through security barricades to head toward the Hemkunt Sahib pilgrimage site.
Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pramendra Doval maintained that dialogue helped defuse the immediate confrontation at the state line.
“Some people had crossed the border post and one or two vehicles had also crossed the border but they agreed to go back after talks,” SSP Pramendra Doval stated.
Following the Thursday evening encounter, the group moved under police protection to take shelter at the Paonta Sahib shrine, located just a few kilometers from the interstate border. The current mobilization follows another recent escalatory incident on June 20, where nearly half a dozen Nihangs occupied the roof of the Nagarasu Gurdwara on the Badrinath Highway and briefly took an elderly man hostage to demand the releases. That specific shrine was evacuated on June 23 after extensive negotiations involving the local administration, shrine management, and sect members from Punjab.
