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They argue that India, though mostly Hindu, is officially a secular country. But such secularism is not regarded by the Sikhs as a virtue. About 1500 their founder, Nanak Chand, broke away from Hinduism because of its caste system and its vast pantheon of gods and demigods, and established a monotheistic religion without images or taboos, but with a strong moral code. Sikh men, in order to emphasize their apartness, leave their hair and beards uncut and wear a dagger symbolic of the militancy of their faith. Through better diet and attention to personal cleanliness, the Sikhs in time became markedly taller and sturdier than their neighbors, supplying the Indian army with some of its finest fighting men. Warning Light. At week's end, police arrests of Sikhs rose to the hundreds, and aroused Sikh leaders called on their followers to rise up and court nonviolent arrest until every one of the 500,000 Sikh families had a son in jail. High over Sant Fateh Singh's hut shone a solitary red electric light. When the light goes dark, it will mean that the holy man has died. And when that happens, said a high Indian official, "there'll be a pukka riot, you can be sure."