JALANDHAR (India) - THOUSANDS of devotees, many of them in tears, attended the funeral on Thursday of a Sikh guru whose murder in Vienna last month triggered riots in India's Punjab state.

Security was tight as top politicians mingled with mourners to pay homage to Sant Rama Nand, 57, who was shot dead in a temple in the Austrian capital on May 24, allegedly by members of a rival Sikh sect.

His body, which was brought back to India on a special flight, had been kept in a glass coffin for followers to pay their respects in Jalandhar town, about 75 kilometres from the Sikh holy city of Amritsar.

Tearful devotees jostled for a glimpse as his body was cremated according to Sikh customs with hundreds of police and paramilitary personnel on hand to maintain law and order.

The shooting of the guru sparked violent riots in India that killed four people.

Senior police official R.K. Jaiswal told AFP earlier in the day that the army had been placed on stand-by.

'We will not allow any disturbance,' he said.

Nand died and 16 other people were injured in the Vienna temple attack, reportedly in a dispute over the role of castes in the Sikh religion.

A second guru, or teacher, Sant Niranjan Dass, 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. -- AFP