Then in mid-February 1999 this reporter received unofficial reports (rumors) that Balavanta's hair test at the University of Missouri had come in positive for arsenic at abnormal levels. Apparently Balavanta had received his report about two months ago and was maintaining strict secrecy.
Further rumors had it that Naveen Krishna was travelling to Mayapur to quietly present a partial report to some of the GBC with the recommendation that Balavanta's investigation be continued and expanded. This turned out not to be true. They were still both in Florida, and quiet as usual.
On February 19 this reporter telephoned Dr. Steve Morris and verbally obtained the detailed results of Balavanta's hair test. Dr. Morris received Srila Prabhupada's hair on June 15, 1998, and after six months had completed the neutron activation analysis. This reporter had originally arranged with Dr. Morris to perform a test on one or two hair samples pro bone (free), but decided to use Dr Chatt in Nova Scotia. Balavanta was told that he could use the free services of Dr. Morris, as Balavanta had made it clear that his GBC provided funds for investigative work were very limited.
Dr, Morris was suite knowledgeable on what constituted normal and abnormal levels of arsenic in human hair. He described that normally one would expect to find from less than 0.05 parts of arsenic per million up to perhaps 0.1 to 0.2 parts per million, depending on exposure to environmental contaminants and so on. His experience was that farmers who are regularly exposed over a long term basis to agricultural herbicides and pesticides containing arsenic compounds MIGHT temporarily attain a level of 1.0 parts per million, which is probably why so many farmers handling these kinds of chemicals have such high rates of serious diseases like cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer's, etc. Dr. Morris then related that his testing revealed:
THE HAIR CONTAINED ALMOST 3.0 PARTS PER MILLION.
Dr. Morris conservatively summarized 'by saying that Srila Prabhupada, at the time represented by that particular half inch of hair, at a very minimum, had 5 to 10 times the normal amount of arsenic as would be normally found in a person. In his opinion, this could not be produced by typical environmental factors, but required the oral ingestion or skin absorption of unusually large amounts of arsenic.
Using Dr. Morris's range of normal hair levels, however, a simple calculation shows that, from 0.05 to 0.2 parts per million as being normal, to almost 3.0 parts as tested is 15 to 60 times over average. The presence of such high amounts of the world's deadliest poison in Srila Prabhupada's hair confirms: Srila Prabhupada was poisoned with arsenic.
It was heard that Balavanta was going to test the Vrindaban ground water to satisfy doubters that there was no way Srila Prabhupada's highly unusual arsenic contamination level was due to water impurities. Srila Prabhupada resided in Vrindaban from May 17 to August 26 (100 days) and from October 2 to November 14 (43 days). There was some news a few years back about health problems in Bengal due to arsenic contamination in deep well water. However, Srila Prabhupada left Mayapur, Bengal in March 1977 after a stay of six weeks only (2.7 - 3.22). If it was the water, then why hasn't any of the permanent residents in Vrindaban or Mayapur taken seriously ill by drinking the same water for the last twenty years? This anticipated argument of discounting the value of 3 ppm and attributing it to environmental factors and not to foul play is what Balavanta was wanting to debunk in advance. This is commendable but seems hardly necessary.
In a 1970 study by McCabe, et al., 99% of 18,000 community water systems in the USA provided an average of about 0.015 milligram of arsenic per person per day. Contamination of well water with arsenic has been a cause of serious health problems in a relatively few and isolated areas, such as New Zealand, Argentina, Taiwan, Chile. The manifestations of illnesses from well water contaminated with arsenic, however, involved permanent residents of that area, not constant world travelers like Srila Prabhupada.
The consistent and cumulative effect of localized contaminated well water over a period of years is what produced the negative health effects in those cases. Srila Prabhupada spent at most only a few months in each location, in effect regularly changing His water supply, while His health continued to steadily deteriorate. The source of the arsenic was not the Vrindaban water.
Dr. Morris explained that the test measures elements and not compounds. All arsenic compounds would be measured in terms of their component elements, such as arsenic, oxygen, sulfur, etc. Within 12 to 24 hours of ingestion, arsenic will begin to be deposited in the hair. Periodic ingestions of arsenic can be seen in a hair profile analysis and would show as changing amounts along the length of the hair. The graph below shows a hypothetical relationship of time, amount of arsenic ingested and the amount of arsenic deposited in hair. Gradually, with a half-life of residence in the body of 3 to 5 days, arsenic is eliminated by urine and other minor avenues or deposited in hair, skin, nails, teeth and other bodily organs and tissues. While present, arsenic does great damage, and those amounts which are not eliminated continue to destroy the body internally. Unfortunately, Balavanta's hair sample had insufficient length for this kind of profile study.
This hypothetical graph shows how hair levels of arsenic fluctuate greatly according to the timing and frequency of arsenic ingestions.
As this reporter has several times seen since the beginning of the poison investigation, some devotees working with the investigation, including the attorneys Gupta and Balavanta, may think secrecy is the best approach. However, any advantage there may be in surprising the suspects with a thick dossier of evidence and extracting dramatic confessions has already been spoiled by the rumor mill, and, although popular in television and Hollywood, may not be very practical in the reality of our situation.
This reporter is firmly convinced that this book is necessary to compel the followers of Srila Prabhupada to openly confront the fact that it is certain Srila Prabhupada was "assassinated," probably by His closest disciples for the sake of their material gain. To keep the evidence collected to date a secret seems unproductive, and a perpetuation of the most serious crime since the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Pusta Krishna Prabhu strongly advised this author that to publish this book would be a defamation of Srila Prabhupada and constitute a horrible offense against Him personally. Such are the illogical and emotional responses that are to be expected. If the evidence was unsubstantial, then Pusta Krishna has a good point. But if it is the truth and verified by substantial evidence, as is the case, then the "defamation" of poisoning Srila Prabhupada should be established and dealt with. This is another area that we do not have space herein to digress into; the conclusion is that the truth, not false rumors, is worthy of present4ation and will always result in good. Hiding the truth is dishonesty and always reacts negatively.
Since the nature and circumstances of crimes of poisoning do not lend themselves to easy or smooth legal indictments or convictions, the next beat effective forum to obtain justice and historical truth is in the public domain.
Through the press and various other media, everyone who cares to know may be informed of the evidence, out in the open. The hope is that this will spur further participation and research into the investigation at hand, resulting in further verification and the ultimate identification and apprehension of the poisoners. Otherwise, are Srila Prabhupada's followers to be deliberately left in the dark? Suppose our parents had died under suspicious circumstance long ago. Is it wrong to try to discover the real story? And after finding it, we should leave it secret? This makes no sense. Silence means complicity. Let us not take this book as entertainment reading and then forget the matter.
There is already too much history in Srila Prabhupada's movement of keeping truths from its members and thus a privileged few then manipulate those kept in the dark. This reporter apologizes to Balavanta, Gupta, the GBC, and others if they cannot appreciate this approach, and trusts that time will show that this book was the right thing to produce.
This story URL: http://www.vnn.org/world/WD9905/WD19-3905.html