Chamliyal fair brings warring armies together
A 320 years old shrine of Sufi saint Dalip Singh Baba ‘Chamliyal’ brought the two hostile armies of India and Pakistan together. The shrine of the Sufi saint is situated 42 km from Jammu city and falls close to the Ramgarh sector of the border in Samba district.
The annual fair at the shrine sees the participation of senior army and BSF officers from Pakistan and India assembling together and paying respects at the shrine.
This year however, the fair is being held amid heightened tensions between the two countries. The field commanders of India’s Border Security Force (BSF) and Pakistan Rangers met on how to hold the Baba Chamliyal Mela on their border.
A flag meeting was held on Monday by the BSF and Rangers to discuss the modalities of the saint’s fair that attracts civilians from both sides of the border. Happy Verma of the BSF and Muhammad Irfan of the Rangers represented the two sides.
“It was agreed to ensure complete peace on the international border so that the saint’s annual fair is held peacefully,” an official who was part of the meet said.
Each year, Pakistan Rangers present a ‘chaddar’ to the BSF at the border as a devotional offer to the saint. It is laid at the Dargah of Baba Chamliyal.
In return, BSF offers soil and holy water from the shrine to their Pakistani counterparts as a gesture of goodwill.
Hundreds of people line up on both sides of the border to witness the event. The fair is held each year on the fourth Thursday of June.
KV Correspondent
