Group of Sikh Dissidents Leaves Temple Peacefully : North Hollywood: Police order the faction to leave. The board of directors takes control of the building.

Chanting and carrying their holy book atop a richly embroidered pillow, about two dozen dissident Sikhs peacefully marched out of a North Hollywood temple Wednesday night rather than be arrested as trespassers.

Five minutes after they left, the temple’s board of directors took control of the building in the 4700 block of Lankershim Boulevard that has been at the center of a convoluted dispute between two Sikh factions. The board said it would close the building, change the locks and install security cameras.

Ten officers from the Los Angeles Police Department’s North Hollywood Division stood by as Capt. David R. Doan read a court order affirming that the temple’s previously elected directors retain control of the building. He then informed the dissidents they would have to leave.

But first, police had to negotiate the matter of footwear.

Doan had obtained special permission from the board of directors to allow officers to wear shoes as they entered the temple to check it for damage and to videotape its condition after the dissidents left.

The dissidents, meanwhile, protested that Sikhs consider it sacrilegious for anyone to appear in the presence of the Gurugranth Sahib, the Sikh holy book, with an uncovered head and wearing shoes.

“We compromised,” Doan said. “We said we wouldn’t go barefoot, but we would wear our hats if they wished it.” He also said he allowed the dissidents to remove the holy book before the shoe-wearing officers entered.

“We had to take our bible out. That was the most painful thing for us. We cannot allow anybody to come into our church with shoes,” said Bhajan Singh, a leader of the dissidents, who loaded the book into a car.

At least three video camera operators taped the events--one for the dissidents, one for the board and a two-man team from the LAPD.

Legal assistant Eddy O. Salman, who works for the attorney representing the board, said some of the temple’s video equipment seemed to be missing. And, he said, “The kitchen has been raided.”

The dissidents, who controlled the temple since Oct. 10, weren’t members of the temple’s congregation, said board President Malkiat S. Sidhu.

“They are what we call uncivilized people,” he added. “From now on we are going to control the temple peacefully.”

Officers had been called to the temple several times since Oct. 3, when several board members claimed that they were assaulted as factions battled physically for control of the building.

The confrontation now appears to be over, at least until a Nov. 5 court hearing to determine which faction--the original board or a replacement board the dissidents say they elected--is the legal corporate owner of the temple.

On Tuesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert O’Brien expanded an Oct. 19 court order to allow the original board of directors to determine who can and cannot enter the temple. The previous order had barred only certain dissidents by name, some of whom the original board members said were affiliated with an organization called Sikh Youth of America.

Even after those named in the restraining order left the temple Oct. 20, others remained, saying they were holding continuous prayer sessions. The directors returned to court, asking the judge to issue a second order giving them control of the temple.

Last week, police were reluctant to interrupt a 48-hour prayer service or arrest the remaining worshipers. Doan said the court papers did not clearly identify who was the rightful temple owner, and referred the two factions back to court.