Muslims perform “chhabeel” in front of the Nabha mosque.

PATIALA: Setting an example of communal brotherhood, the Muslim Iqra Welfare Society on Tuesday organised a “chhabeel” in front of a Nabha mosque in this district to commemorate the martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev, fifth Guru of the Sikhs, by offering sweet water and rose milk to the hawkers and passers-by on a hot day.The Sikh nagar kirtan (religious procession) received these welcome drinks as it crossed Pandusar’s Jama Masjid Mohalla. The Panj Pyaras, a group of five baptized Sikhs who lead the procession, were also welcomed by the neighborhood Muslims, who also gave them siropas (robes of honor). Iqra Welfare Society president Inayat Khan stated in Nabha that: “We work for communal brotherhood, and we ran this chhabeel for about five hours of Tuesday evening to synchronize it with the nagar kirtan. In return, the Gurdwara Committee of Nabha’s Mohalla Kartarpura Kahota presented the Muslim organizers with siropas. Our Muslim brothers offered chhabeel even to the gatka party (martial artists) escorting the procession, according to Mohalla Kartarpura Gurdwara Committee President Inderjit Singh. Professor Paramvir Singh of Punjabi University’s Sikhism encyclopaedia department said: “This is a great Muslim gesture of reconciliation to run a chhabeel on the martyrdom day of a Sikh Guru who had been executed in 1603.”