Dear Editor,

I TRAVELLED to India frequently from 1985 onwards. I developed association with countless individuals in India – prime ministers, presidents, ministers, governors, political leaders, and others. One that impressed me the most for his simplicity, helpfulness, and caring for Indians outside of India was none of the above. He was Chaman Lal, a non-politician, who was born in Lahore, Pakistan, in 1920 in what was then united British India. He helped developed closer links between India and Guyana and other countries.
Chaman Lal truly cared for and had compassion for overseas Indians, the term then used by India for people of Indian descent outside of the country including Indo-Guyanese. (The term Indian diaspora was not in vogue, although it was used by my university colleagues in the early 1980s and later coined and institutionalised by Ravi Dev and myself at a meeting in 1987, when we were part of a group of academics organising the Fourth Conference of Indians overseas to commemorate the 150th anniversary since the arrival of Indians in the Caribbean. That conference, organised by myself and others, was held at Columbia University in July 1988).

This year is Chaman Lal-ji’s birth centenary and I use it to pay tribute to him. I never met great figures like Gandhi, Nehru, Mandela, King, etc. I only read about them. I was privileged to meet PMs and presidents of countless countries including Jagan, Panday, Kamla, Lachmon (Suriname), Jugnauth (Mauritius), Chaudhry (Fiji), etc. None was as humble and simple as Chaman Lal-ji. He was the most remarkable person I have ever met. Every Guyanese, “Trini”, Fijian, Mauritiusian, Surinamese, and African Indian who met Chaman Lal uttered similar remarks about this unsung hero. Even Indians within India said the same about him. He was held in high esteem by PMs, presidents, ministers, chief ministers, and others who knew him. Some like Vajpayee and Advani and several others credited him for their rise to high office.

Before I went to India in 1985, I was advised by community activist Dr. Mukund Mody of Staten Island to meet Chaman Lal who was head of an organisation in Delhi. I did. He pulled out a book of names of correspondents and visitors of other Guyanese and “Trinis” and of individuals and organisations in Mauritius, Fiji, Africa, America, etc. Chaman Lal had led a division of an organisation that championed the welfare of overseas Indians and his role was to maintain correspondence with them. He had travelled to several countries but not Caribbean. However, he knew a lot about Indians in the Caribbean and the difficulties of life in Guyana during the 1970s and 1980s when basic goods were banned, impacting the practices of religious faiths and diet. He called on the Indian government to raise the issue of violation of human rights in Guyana.

Chaman Lal was the top student in graduate school, winning the gold medal as top graduate for his MS in Botany at age 21. He joined the Quit India movement that advocated for India’s independence. When India became independent in August 1947, he had a falling out with Nehru for formally breaking the link with overseas Indians.  Nehru told overseas Indians repeatedly that they must become immersed in the affairs of the nation where they were located. He said that India lacked the resources to address the problems facing overseas Indians. He told them they should not look towards India for help on problems they faced and that they should resolve their own problems. There was a division in the Congress government camp on Nehru’s policy towards overseas Indians. Many opposed Nehru’s position, but they lost out to Nehru who was head of the government. Chaman Lal and other Hindu nationalists broke with Nehru and the Congress government’s position on overseas Indians. Chaman Lal was of the view that overseas Indians are children of India and that they supported and stood with those who struggled for India’s independence. He felt India should treat overseas Indians as citizens and have an open-door policy towards them. He felt India should champion their welfare and interests and speak out against their mistreatment. Chaman Lal held on to his position till his death in 2003. He started a campaign of linkage with overseas Indian organisations and individuals and began advocating for benefits and opportunities for overseas Indians including scholarships for them to study in India. His advocacy led to Guyanese and others having academic scholarships to study in India and cultural groups coming to perform in Guyana. Chaman Lal called for Indian government representatives to be stationed in Guyana and other territories where there were large numbers of Indians to look into their welfare and for cultural exchanges with them. Although Guyana, Trinidad, Suriname, Fiji, etc. were still colonial territories, not politically independent, India stationed cultural representatives in several of them or sent commissions to look into the welfare of Indians.  Chaman Lal ramped up communications with overseas Indians and encouraged greater linkage and cultural exchanges. Whenever overseas Indians visited India, he would meet them and tried to provide hospitable treatment. He met Cheddi Jagan in Delhi after he was toppled from office in 1953, and in subsequent trips.

Chaman Lal was largely responsible for establishing a huge centre in old Delhi that accommodated hundreds. Several Guyanese visited him there beginning in the early 1970s; some stayed at that centre. Ravi Dev, Swami Aksharnand, Pt. Vikash and several other pandits and activists met Chaman Lal. They all lauded his character and behaviour towards overseas Indian visitors. He lived a very frugal and austere life and discouraged wasteful expenditures. He encouraged us to stay at his centre rather than in expensive hotels. He urged use of public transport rather than taxis. He knew virtually how to get anywhere in Delhi, a massive city, with public bus (about one rupee or a couple cents per ride). He shared everything he had with visitors in his office which also served as his bedroom and living room in a building that hosts hundreds that he helped to establish.

Chaman Lal was very articulate in Indian diaspora affairs. He did his work very quietly. He was the man behind the scenes. He never sought public attention or credit for what he did. He loved people, and people loved him. It’s no surprise that when he died, many leading political figures came to pay tribute – among who were the PM (Vajpayee), deputy PM (Advani), and members of the cabinet.  Even at the cremation site, Vajpayee and Advani went to pay last respects to his body on the burning pyre. Chaman Lal made them who they were. (Once I wanted to meet Advani to discuss an issue pertaining to Guyana. Chaman Lal phoned Advani’s Home Affair’s Ministry and sought an appointment for me but was told Advani was out of town. Minutes later, Advani, who had gone to Kashmir, phoned back. That is an example of the respect politicians had for Chaman Lal. He got anything he requested. He was very close to Advani and Vajpayee, and he recognised the leadership potential of Narendra Modi supporting his appointment as general-secretary and later as chief minister of Gujarat in 2001.
It was through the quiet work of Chaman Lal that Guyana was able to receive so much assistance from India under the government of Vajpayee in the late 1990s and continuing until this day. And off course, Guyanese in the diaspora from New York lobbied Chaman Lal, Vajpayee, Advani, and others for increased assistance to Guyana.
Chaman Lal dedicated his life to serving India and overseas Indians and cementing ties between India and diasporic countries. In death, his memory still inspires many to engage in voluntary service to serve mankind. The institutions he established continue to serve visitors from Guyana.

Yours truly,
Vishnu Bisram