Mela Baba Chamliyal: Eighth Year Running No Pakistani Allowed To Join Celebrations
In the past, the event would also bring the Indian border guards and their Pakistani counterparts together, making it a symbol of India-Pakistan bonhomie.
Srinagar:Border Security Force (BSF) officers and jawans were joined by thousands of devotees on Thursday to pray for peace and prosperity in the country at a mystic’s mela (anniversary) held in Chamliyal village in the Ramgarh sector of International Border (IB) with Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba district.
The festival in the memory of Dileep Singh Manhas alias Baba Chamliyal, a revered figure on both sides of the border, is held on the fourth Thursday of June every year.
In the past, the event would also bring the Indian border guards and their Pakistani counterparts together, making it a symbol of India-Pakistan bonhomie.
As per the tradition, BSF troopers would also drive tractor-trolleys carrying shakkar (clay) and sharbhat (beverage) for thousands of men and women devotees from Pakistan who would gather just across the IB in Saidanwali hamlet.
Prior to the 1971 war, civilians from across the border would also join the festival. The tradition suffered a major setback when in 1989-90 the Kashmiri separatist campaign burst into a major violence and subsequently both the IB which is called by Islamabad as working boundary and the Line of Control (LoC) were turned into war theatre with exchange of fire becoming a daily affair.
Officials said that on Thursday tens of thousands of devotees from across Jammu region and neighbouring Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and beyond turned up at the mystic's mausoleum to pay obeisance despite scorching heat. On the other side of the border, about 20, 000 people converged at Saidanwali to pray at a replica of the Baba Chamliyal's tomb built after restrictions were imposed on the Pakistani devotees' visit. While at the Chamliyal's tomb, the mela is of one day, the celebrations continue for one week at Saidanwali.
The devotees including Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs visit Baba Chamliyal’s tomb or its replica for "effective treatment to chronic skin diseases" by applying clay and water collected from the original one. The 322-year-old mela is seen as a symbol of the shared past of the two countries.
Alkesh Kumar Sinha, the Commandant of BSF’s 101 battalion offered a ‘chadar’ at the grave of the saint in a pre-dawn function to mark the commencement of the annual mela.
“This is a 322-year-old shrine and enjoys a lot of respect among the devotees. I reached the shrine Wednesday night to take part in the traditional prayers in the early hours of the day (Thursday),” he told reporters at the shrine. He added that the district administration, shrine committee and the BSF are working together for the success of the mela.
