By Patita Pavana das
It was soon after Shrila Prabhupada departed for Vaikuntha—just about the time Hare Krishna Land was opened in early 1978—that a terrible riot erupted outside the front gate of the Juhu property. India is a volatile country and such riots often involving dozens of deaths are an all too common event there. The riot began when an illegal squatter on the property assaulted and verbally abused a hot-headed chokidar, or temple gatekeeper. In the ensuing brawl, the squatter met his end through a blow from another chokidar. With a man lying dead, a scuffle was now transformed into a riot wherein an incensed crowd converged around the property hurling rocks. Fortunately the riff-raff remained outside on the street, but the devotees had to take shelter for their lives. The riot did not involve even one single ISKCON devotee, neither Indian nor foreign—only local Indians participated in the melee. Nevertheless, six foreign devotees would be arrested and tried for murder in its aftermath. The senior devotee of those “Bombay Six” was Shridhar Swami, and the other accused devotees were thankful to have his stalwart example of surrender to Shrila Prabhupada and the holy name.