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Mela Chamliyal - Yet To Become
A Testimonial Of Friendship

By Syed Junaid Hashmi

07 July, 2007
Countercurrents.org

Standing barely at a distance of 600 yards from the shrine of Baba Chamliyal, 11 year old Shifa Fatima, daughter of an officer of Pakistan Rangers' wonders, why she cannot visit the shrine of the saint whose martyrdom signifies irrelevance of boundaries. She questions the building trust between India and Pakistan saying that if both the countries are trying to be triumphant over each other's heart, then why she cannot cross over and interact with children from this side.

Shifa fails to comprehend the intricacies of International Border (IB). "I am unable to understand why these lines at a place where Baba Chamliyal lives to bless people on both the sides, if these could not be redrawn, why they cannot be meeting points," shared Shifa in a confident mode. Putting her right hand on the chin, she continued "I think hostility has become deep rooted, space for love, tranquility and serenity has gone missing, yet whenever I come to this place from where I feel myself closer to Baba, I pray to him for change of hearts between the leaders of the two countries."

Shifa looks at the gate on the Indian side and all of a sudden, a Pakistani Ranger tells her to withdraw from that position. Shifa quickly retreats and in a hurry falls down only to be picked up by a Jawan of Indian Border Security Forces (BSF). The Jawan tells her that she can watch the people on the other side (Indian Side) but cannot go there. Perplexed, Shifa returns only to be told by a Pakistani Ranger not to move out of the tent put on by the Indian side for the meeting of officers from both sides.

Daughter of Sector Commander of Pakistani Rangers Zafar Raja, Shifa sits alongside her sister watching the happenings inside the camp with seriousness. Again when she begins her interaction with this reporter, she says that she reads in class 4 th at City School in Sialkot and is regarded as one of the most submissive and intelligent student.

"I have never been punished in my class nor have I done anything which would annoy my teachers, so I am innocent, why I am not being allowed to visit the shrine," quizzed Shifa. She went on to say that if elders cannot be allowed, let the children be the messengers of peace and prosperity. "Children are innocent and are regarded closer to god, it is said that god listens to them, I pray to Allah Talla to bring the two countries together so that the dividing lines become irrelevant," entreated Shifa.

Interestingly, Shifa's words seemed to match expressions of an intellectual possessing acumen of explaining controversial, inconceivable and significant components of Indo-Pak relationship. "My Abbu keeps telling me that Peace is imperative but I ask him, why it is taking time in returning to this part of the world," said Shifa.

She stressed that a Pakistani is not allowed to walk distance of 600 yards by the Indian security forces while an Indian cannot walk the same distance on this side, for the restrictions imposed by the Pakistani forces.

Shifa's elder sister Qainaat when asked about Baba Chamliyal gave a detailed description about the life and times of the great saint. "300-year-old mela is celebrated at two spots, one on the Indian side and one on our side, the two places are at a distance of 600 yards from each other, and on Indian side is Chamliyal where the shrine of Baba is located while as on our side, Baba's durbar is at Saidawali in Pakistan," informed Qainaat.

Qainaat added that when Chamliyal mela is celebrated both by India and Pakistan in unison, then why can't they live like this forever. "This annual mela relates to Baba Dalip Singh Manhas and yet it is celebrated by one and all, if even at this place people cannot meet and interact, then where they could be expected to meet," implored Qainaat.

Like Shifa and Qainaat, Nidhi Prakash who belongs to Jammu found the place opportune to say that faith is yet to be restored between the two countries. "Relations have been restored but faith is yet to be restored, hypocrisy is paramount but on ground things have not moved even an inch, bus service is running but the passengers are missing and above all Baba is waiting for his devotees from the other side but the boundaries are yet to become irrelevant," maintained Nidhi.

Impinging little further into the chemistry of love-hate affair between India and Pakistan, Nidhi maintained that Baba Chamliyal died while fighting with some criminals and his body fell at Chamliyal while the head at Saidawali. "Baba's martyrdom demands maintenance of peace along with unity and integrity between the two neighbours but who listens to the one sleeping in the lap of nature," gasped Nidhi.

Like these three children from India and Pakistan, hundreds of other devotees seemed toying the same line. "Faith unites us again and again, only to be driven apart with the next outbreak of hostilities between India and Pakistan, for us mela Chamliyal is an occasion to forget the awful dividing wall, wars and accumulated bitterness between the tow nations, we want our children to live a completely peaceful life," said Shamsher Singh, a resident of Hiranagar.

Despite exchanging Chaddar (which the Pakistani side offers at the Shrine of Baba Chamliyal) and "shakkar" (sacred earth), "sharbat" (holy water) which the Indian side offers, mistrust seemed evident with one keeping a strict vigil over the other. Shifa's incident is merely an indication of the fact that the two sides are yet to reconcile heart to heart. "The walls of hatred still exist between the two countries, People might be comfortable but neither the politicians nor the generals are interested in listening to them, reconciliation might take some more doing," said one Sher khan who had traveled all along from Muzaffarabad in Pakistan Administered Kashmir (PAK) to pay obeisance at the Baba's shrine standing at a distance of around 300 yards from it.

He maintained that thousands of devotees from Pakistan used to visit the shrine on the Indian side to pay obeisance and carry along with them "shakkar" and "sharbat" (water). "Our Rangers and the Border Security Force (BSF) used to stand as guardians of this faith, this practice continued until the outbreak of the Indo-Pak war in 1965. And, after the war was over, the devotees from either side of the border were allowed only to come up to the zero line and not to cross it," informed khan.

He further said that the practice of stopping the devotees on either side of the border much before the zero line started after the 1971 Indo-Pak war. "A replica of the Baba's shrine came at Saidawali, but the exchange of " shakkar-sharbat" and "chaddar" continues till today," added Sher Khan. Many in the mela seemed convinced like Qainaat that faith unites people while war can only destroy traditions built and ties forged through ages. "This is not just a fair but a strong bond that has kept people of Pakistan and India emotionally close to each other despite having a history soaked with blood," he added.

Writer is a Journalist, presently working with jammu and kashmir's reputed english daily "The Kashmir Times". He can be reached at [email protected]

 

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