After hours of standoff between a group of Nihangs and the administration at the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border here, the group returned to Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh in the early hours of Friday following negotiations with authorities.

The development brought an end to the tension that prevailed at the Kulhal checkpoint in the Vikasnagar area on Thursday night, where a large group of the Sikh sect clashed with the police. The Nihang group joined others from their sect at Paonta Sahib Gurdwara where discussions are still ongoing with senior officials of Uttarakhand Police and administration.