On June 23, 1985, Air India’s Montreal-New Delhi ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182 exploded in mid-air just 45 minutes before it was due to land at London’s Heathrow Airport. All 329 people on board died, most of them Canadians of Indian descent. The attack was blamed on Sikh extremists as retaliation for ‘Operation Blue Star’ , the 1984 Indian military action to remove militants from the Golden Temple.
40 Years Of Kanishka Bombing Case
Why In News
- On June 23, 1985, Air India’s Montreal-New Delhi ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182 exploded in mid-air just 45 minutes before it was due to land at London’s Heathrow Airport. All 329 people on board died, most of them Canadians of Indian descent. The attack was blamed on Sikh extremists as retaliation for ‘Operation Blue Star’ , the 1984 Indian military action to remove militants from the Golden Temple.
The Bombing Of Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182
- Remains the deadliest aviation disaster in Canadian history.
- The Babbar Khalsa, a Sikh terrorist outfit, was held responsible for the attack. It was seen as a direct response to the army operation carried out at the Golden Temple in June 1984.
- After the incident, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) launched a massive inquiry. It went on to become one of the longest and most detailed terrorism investigations ever undertaken in Canada. A few months after the bombing, Talwinder Singh Parmar, who led the Babbar Khalsa, and Inderjit Singh Reyat, an electrician, were taken into custody by the RCMP. Parmar, who was earlier sought by India for extradition in the early 1980s, was released due to a “lack of evidence”. Later findings showed that Parmar was behind the attack. He was killed by Indian police in 1992.
- In 2000, Ripudaman Singh Malik, a businessman based in Vancouver, and Ajaib Singh Bagri, a mill worker from British Columbia, were charged with offences including mass murder and conspiracy.
- But in 2005, after a long court process, both were cleared of all charges. The judge cited problems with the facts presented and questions over the reliability of key witnesses. The verdict came as a blow to the families of the victims.
- Reyat was the only person who ended up being found guilty in connection with the bombing. He was later convicted of lying under oath during the trial of Malik and Bagri, which led to a further prison sentence.
Who Is Mr X ?
- Despite the acquittal of two key bombing suspects in 2005, investigators continued working on the case to “tie up some loose ends.” RCMP Assistant Commissioner David Teboul, commander of federal policing in British Columbia, said this renewed effort led to the identification of the mysterious man known as “Mr. X.”
- On June 4, 1985, just weeks before the bombing, the man travelled to Duncan, British Columbia, with terror plot mastermind Talwinder Singh Parmar, a leader of the Babbar Khalsa, a Sikh separatist militant group. The pair then met up with Inderjit Singh Reyat, an electrician.
- The trio entered the woods to test a bomb, while being watched by agents from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). Although the agents heard an explosion, they mistook it for a gunshot and did not take further action at the time.
- Parmar, the founder of Babbar Khalsa, was killed by police in Punjab in 1992 before he could be charged in connection with the Air India bombing. Reyat was the only individual convicted in the case. He pleaded guilty to helping build the bomb that brought down Flight AI-182, but claimed he did not know the identity of “Mr. X.”
- Reyat was later convicted of perjury, which resulted in a longer prison sentence. He has since served his time and been released.
