Sikh devotees gathered under tight security near the holy city of Amritsar on Thursday for the funeral of a guru whose murder in Vienna triggered riots in India's Punjab state.
Sant Rama Nand, 57, was shot dead in a temple in the Austrian capital on May 24, allegedly by members of a rival Sikh sect.
His body, which had been brought back to India on a special flight, was to be cremated later Thursday in the town of Jalandhar, about 75 kilometres (47 miles) from Amritsar.
"The army has been put on alert as thousands of Sant Rama Nand's followers are expected to pay their homage. We will not allow any disturbance," senior police official R.K. Jaiswal told AFP.
Nand, 56, died and 16 other people were injured in the Vienna temple attack, which was reportedly over a dispute about the role of caste in the Sikh religion.
A second guru, or teacher, Sant Niranjan Dass, 66, was among those wounded as Sikhs fought each other with guns and knives inside the temple.
The two gurus, who belong to a group representing low-caste Sikhs, were visiting Vienna to meet worshippers.
The riots that followed the killing led to curfews being imposed in major towns across Punjab state and left two people dead.
Copyright 2009 AFP South Asian Edition
