Authorities clamped curfew in four cities — Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Phagwara and Hoshiarpur — and called in the Army at Jalandhar as protesters set fire to train coaches and buses and clashed with police.

One person was killed and four injured as soldiers opened fire in Lambra village, near Jalandhar, and another died in police firing on protesters at Jalandhar Cantt railway station. Army and police had to resort to firing in at least five places in Jalandhar and Phillaur. As violence spread to Haryana, Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal said he had sought 25 companies of paramilitary forces from the Centre. Caste war in global glare India may have to fend off afresh global calls for casteism to be recognized as racism, given the caste fingerprints on the bloody clash among Sikhs in Vienna. India has maintained that its constitutional commitment against casteism is proof of its credentials but Dalit lobbies say growing evidence of presence of caste on global platforms would put pressure on India. PM invokes Gurus, appeals for peace Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Monday that he was “deeply distressed over the outbreak of violence in Punjab” and appealed for peace, invoking the preachings of Sikh gurus. “Whatever the provocation, it is important to maintain peace and harmony among different sections... people should go back to their homes and allow security forces to restore law and order.” Akali Dal calls for shutdown across Punjab Jalandhar/Chandigarh:

Army deployed 2,500 troops along with two battalions of BSF to control the mobs on a rampage since Sunday’s clash among Sikhs at a Vienna gurdwara. The fury reignited on Monday morning with the death of sect leader Sant Ramanand, 57, the second-in-command, from gunshot wounds. The condition of Dera head Sant Niranjan Dass, 68, who was the second guest speaking at the Vienna gurdwara, was stable after undergoing emergency surgery, doctors in Vienna said. I

Dera Sachkhand has a considerable following among Dalits across Punjab, especially in Doaba region (between rivers Sutlej and Beas). The ruling Akali Dal in Punjab has called for a shutdown across the state to protest the Vienna incident.

Army had to resort to firing in Lambra when an angry mob burnt the car of a superintendent of police. In Phillaur, protesters waylaid a bus of Punjab Police commandos on the national highway and even tried to snatch their weapons. Around 10 persons were injured when commandos resisted and opened fire. The wounded were rushed to a hospital in Ludhiana, where one person was declared brought dead.

Condemning the killing of the Dera leader, Punjab and Haryana chief ministers Parkash Singh Badal and Bhupinder Singh Hooda appealed for calm and asked people not to be provoked.