India, June 26 -- Tensions intensified near the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border after group of sword-wielding Nihang tried to break the barricade in Dehradun district's Kulhal area on late Thursday evening. The standoff between the police and the Nihang Sikh group continued for hours and ended in the early hours on Friday after negotiations with authorities.

The group was trying to travel to Sri Hemkunt Sahib in Uttarakhand from Himachal Pradesh to demand release of four Nihang Sikhs arrested after a dispute with locals in Chamoli district.

Anticipating flare-up after inputs of a group of Nihang Sikhs - those within Sikhism adhering to the traditional warrior order - entering Himachal Pradesh, security agencies had been placed on hi...