Introducing K.P.S. Gill and Chandi Heffner

As Katie Walter reports, the Yamuna Bridge issue continues to be fought out in the courts. However, Jagannath Poddar of Friends of Vrindavan points out that though the issue galvanized foreign opinion, as seen on the Save Yamuna Save Vrindavan Facebook page, locally it has not had the same effect. Part of the reason is that there has been no real concerted effort to get the message out to Vrindavan residents explaining the consequences of the bridge and the rest of the unbridled development in the town. And there has also been the deliberate spreading of misunderstanding regarding two of the important figures in this whole story.

Former Punjab DGP K.P.S. Gill and Ms. Chandi Heffner of the medical NGO CDH International, the owner of the Keshi Ghat, along with Padmanabh and Chandan Goswamis, who run the most prominent Yamuna Arati at Keshi Ghat, were the first who sounded the alarm about the bridge. Had they not done so, it is unlikely that any response would have taken place. Shrivatsa Goswami also became involved, and some local environmentalists like Sewak Sharanji as well as foreign sadhus like Paramadvaiti Maharaja also took part at this beginning stage. There was very little involvement from the Vrindavan grassroots.

The reason for this is fairly simple. Local people, led by the vested development interests, including various government organizations, see Mr. Gill and Ms. Chandi as primarily protecting their own personal property and not having a real concern for the global welfare of Vrindavan. The bridge project was being sold to them as beneficial to the economic development of the town as a whole. So it was popularly framed as a selfish millionaire outsider obstructing a plan that would be of benefit to the greater mass of local people.

This is of course a total distortion. Certainly there is an element of truth in that Gill, Chandi and Padmanabh Goswami all have some personal interest in seeing the blight of the bridge not disfiguring their front yard, but they are wise enough to recognize that this disfigurement affects far more than themselves. They just happen to be in the front line.

Mr. Gill has invested a great deal of time, money and used his considerable personal influence to make numerous gains in stopping the construction. He even started a community organization, the Yamuna Vrindavan Heritage Foundation, at the end of 2009 and held a handful of meetings at Keshi ghat. Only a few days after this, the BVHA was started by other interests in Vrindavan, a move that understandably made Mr. Gill feel that his efforts to reach out to Vrindavan stakeholders was in vain.

At least the BVHA has been able to take root, allowing for a wider movement towards the preservation of Vrindavan's environment and cultural heritage. Without such a broad-based, widely popular awareness of what is at stake, there is no possibility of Vrindavan taking any change of direction.




Mr. Gill, whose role in the suppression of the Khalistan movement in the 1980's and 90's made him something of a national hero, and who has continued to be a prominent leader in anti-terrorism politics, and has even been awarded the Padma Shri, India's 4th-highest civilian honor, for his work in the civil service, is nevertheless a controversial figure locally.

There may be many reasons for this. One may be that he is a Sikh, meaning that his religious attachment to Vrindavan is suspect. He is also an outsider, a Punjabi and not a native of Vrindavan. His background in the Punjab police forces and anti-terrorism squads, rather than making him a hero, has had the effect of turning him into a bit of a mysterious and alien figure, especially as he is often surrounded by bodyguards. Finally, he is associated with Chandi Heffner, a wealthy foreign woman, and this makes him game for all manner of jealousy and rumor.

Moreover, since the YVHF, Mr. Gill has not made any real attempt to win local public opinion, but has decided to fight his battle against the bridge entirely behind the scenes and in the courts.

Ms. Heffner also seeks to preserve her privacy, even though she has been using her considerable private means for bringing medical care to surrounding villages, feeding Vrindavan beggars and stray animals on a regular basis, etc. Her direct support made much of the primary courtcase research into the environmental and heritage situation possible.

Furthermore, the investment she has made on refurbishing and renovating the Bharatpur kings' Keshi Ghat temple and residence, etc., is a marvelous bit of legitimate development in Vrindavan, of which we would like to see more. Unfortunately, this is not the public opinion. It is the commonly held idea that the rich foreign lady took over part of Keshi Ghat and gutted it, building it to her own liking. Once again, this is completely false. Ms. Heffner did a great deal of research to learn exactly how the building used to appear so she could restore it as faithfully as possible to its original state.

Now the numerous misconceptions about Mr. Gill and Ms. Heffner might be entirely inconsequential, except for the fact that the battle for public opinion is a crucial one. The good that one does is often only as effective as the public's appreciation of it. And the current situation is that neither Gill nor Chandi are seen in a positive light by the majority of Vrindavan's population, especially where the bridge issue is concerned. And, by extension, anyone who supports their position with regards the bridge is seen as having been "bought" or influenced by them.

In fact, the bridge issue has become so associated with Mr. Gill's name that almost any mention of it immediately produces a visceral reaction in the minds of many local people. This is in fact made worse by the fact that Western voices, like mine and Paramadvaiti Maharaj's, are also seen as being outsiders' voices and therefore suspect.

At any rate, whatever has happened has happened. The important thing now is to keep our eye on the ball and not let personal failures get in the way of the real goal, which is the common interest of all Vrajavasis, and by extension, all devotees around the world. The fact is that influential and competent individuals like Mr. Gill and Chandi Heffner are an invaluable asset to this cause, and no amount of personal flaws, real or imagined, can detract from their extremely worthwhile service to Vrindavan Dham.