Hindustan Murdabad, Khalistan Zindabad” “Kill Modi… politics” were the cries ringing out in my ears, as I crossed the 14th street entrance of the National Press Club, Washington DC last week, where as part of my North American speaking tour, I addressed the American media, on “Kanishka, Khalistan and terrorism”.  I ran into this ISI sponsored Khalistani protest, waving Pakistani & Khalistani flags, not actually for my benefit, but for the Indian congregation of MPs who were addressing the media on Operation Sindoor, led by Dr Shashi Tharoor at the same venue, later that day.

My thoughts flashed back to 40 years ago this very month, when the Air India Kanishka was blown up enroute to London from Toronto, as it destroyed my entire world, orphaning me, then still a teenager. This is a tragedy that the world forgot, that Canada avoided, and India deliberately ignored for almost 40 long years. 331 of our loved ones passed away in the twinkle of an eye, to the dastardly explosion of terrorist’s bombs. A tragedy that could have been avoided, had the Canadian intelligence and other agencies not ignored the alarm bells and warnings, or paid heed to the Indian and American warnings, or had Pierre Trudeau and Canada acceded to the almost 29 Indian extradition requests for Talwinder Singh Parmar since 1982.

Kanishka is that terrorist bombing that became a pawn in the hands of political masters in India, who refused to recognise, acknowledge or even consider building a memorial to our dead, too afraid to hurt Akali or Khalistani sentiments, for far too long, unable to balance the pogrom with the carnage & tragedy of Kanishka 1985.

When the world speaks of air disasters, they speak of 911, Lockerbie, Tenerife, TWA, KAL, MAS, Iran Air, Air France, but few remember that sandwiched in between all of them, was Air India 182 Kanishka, it is even today, the World’s deadliest Aircraft bombing, and it was, until 911, the worst act of Aviation terror known to man. The 2001 Angus Reid survey showed that 4/5 Canadians don’t even know about the Air India bombing, I’m pretty certain that 99/100 people in India don’t even remember it.

For the families of Air India 182, Kanishka, we are a race that the world forgot, of an Indian flag carrier, who no one cared about, for which no memorial exists in India, even until today. We families, have spent 40 years fighting for justice and seeking a voice at every high table in the world. It is a journey that I undertake on our pilgrimage for justice, truth and recognition of the sacrifices made by those whom we , and the truth we hope that will be found. June 12th 1985 was when I last said goodbye to my entire family, as they left for Canada on a trip that ironically, I was to take as well, but was stymied by my failure at my 12th standard, and stayed behind for revaluation. Little did I know then, that it would be the last time, that I ever saw my beloved family. Less than 12 days later I got a call that took me to Cork to identify my beloved family, a teenager orphaned & scarred by the cruel act of a bunch of madmen, I flew off that very day. Landing in London that first night, the horrors began, with us having to evacuate the hotel at 3 am in the cold rain, because of a bomb threat from the same Khalistanis. Shaken we finally landed in Cork the next day.

The scene at the Cork hospital, was one of a war-torn battlefield, as the fog of war lifted each evening, each side counting their dead. Like all families, I waited daily at Cork Hospital, after the Naval ships brought in bodies & in some cases body parts, for the horrific Interpol identification process, by each of us. As a young 17-year-old, I underwent this ordeal, for 23 days, until the Navy gave up their search, I returned heartbroken to London. On the 24th day however, a 131st body was suddenly discovered, and I was called back to Cork, to identify Sylvia, and take her home to Mumbai for her last rites.

The tragedy that families felt at the bombing was surpassed only by the cold rebuff by Governments in Canada and India to the scale & the nature of the conspiracy. There was little attempt to reach out to families, or for the Indian or Canadian Governments to even address the issue, leave alone investigate it. To imagine the scale of the conspiracy back then, try and comprehend how a rag tag terrorist outfit, funded by the ISI, had built and placed two suitcase bombs from Vancouver BC, via CP Air, onto two Air India Jumbo jets, 10,000 miles apart, triggered to blow up at almost the same time across the earth, having tested it in the Vancouver woods. This was at a time, when mobile telephones, internet, GPS or remote-control bombs did not exist, we still booked trunk calls and used inland letters, and never had Internet. Had both the flights not been delayed, AI-182 would have exploded at Heathrow, and AI-301 at Narita, and caused untold mayhem and death at two of the biggest airports in the world, that was their goal.

A year is a long time in politics, and by the time the first anniversary arrived in 1986, the dignitaries and mantris arrived at Ahakista, Cork, to unveil the memorial & the multi faith prayer ceremony. Promises aplenty were made by Cabinet ministers from the Canadian and Indian Governments, but it was only the Irish who kept their promise of building this beautiful memorial near the Atlantic Ocean, where the aircraft went down within a year.

The struggle of the families to get answers from a silent RCMP, and the Canadian Government, or a stoic Indian Government was akin to squeezing blood from stone. It is noteworthy that for the first 6 months, the Canadians tried to even avoid the mention that AI-182 was brought down by a bomb, and said so before the committee of Justice BN Kirpal (later CJI of Supreme Court), whilst hesitating to participate fully in the Indian Government enquiry. 

This was clearly a bomb by Khalistani terrorists, that blew up the AI-182 Kanishka. In fact, it was Justice Kripal’s thesis in Sept 1985, that somehow the bombing in Narita Tokyo and Ireland were connected, but he could not confirm, as his remit was limited to the Kanishka only, and they had no access to the Tokyo investigations. Families wrote to both governments, but the tragedy of Air India 182 was like a mirage in the desert. It took more than a decade and a half for the RCMP to act in the matter, and it was not until  Oct 27, 2000 that charges were finally laid in the case.

It is said, that when America sneezes, the world catches a cold. Just as Pearl Harbour changed the face of World War-II, 911 changed the attitude to terrorism the world over, It changed our universe, and in many perverse ways, had Mohammed Atta not tried to flatten New York, the RCMP & CSIS in Canada may never have moved beyond that stage. The US & Global outrage over 911, made everybody stand-up and take note. India & Canada already had their “911 moment” years earlier, but Canada had dropped the ball on preventing it and later prosecuting it, deliberately or not, we shall never know. It had taken 15 long years before the Criminal charges were finally laid by the RCMP. During those 15 years, most of the Khalistani conspirators had either run away to other countries or gone underground. The victims’ families had written 100s of letters and petitions to Canadian and Indian Premiers and MPs to look into the matter. I had personally raised the issue with at least 4 Indian Prime Ministers and met countless ministers to no avail, Indian politicians were too scared of upsetting the Sikh sentiments, when it was always clear that all Sikhs are not Khalistanis, in fact very far from it.

The Sikh community is perhaps the pride of India in every field and walk of life, but the Khalistani terrorists are the vilest, blood thirsty criminals one can find, this was a fact that escaped the notice of successive Indian and Canadian Governments, who in particular, literally paid obeisance to the Khalistanis. The victims’ families were lost, between a rock and a hard place, the Canadian Government had ignored them because they were Indian, the Indian Government had pretended as though this dastardly act had not even taken place, and it was a foreign event. The India of the 80s, 90s and 2000s was a soft state and even now (Pahalgam aside) we do not always show the resolve that is needed to, had this not been so, the Khalistanis would think 100 times before attacking our temples overseas and in our land. The 1990s saw the Khalistani movement burn itself out and between Julio Ribeiro and KPS Gill they made sure of the fact that they destroyed what was left of the Khalistani movement. On one such early morning raid in the village of Kang Arayan, the Punjab police acting on a tip-off, tracked down the dreaded terrorist Talwinder Singh Parmar, crossing over from Pakistan along with his ISI handlers, a fierce gun battle ensued. Parmar, and ISI agents Intekhab Zia and Habibullah were amongst the 6 killed that day, as they snuck in to Punjab, this was October 15th 1992. Pakistan acknowledged their citizens, but called them tourists, who were armed with rocket launchers, Ak-47s and grenades.

Almost a decade later, the Canadian Crown prosecution labored to prepare its case against the conspirators, with evidence that had been collected by multiple agencies, even as the truth and reconciliation commission of the 911 had already begun its hearings. Ironically the most important evidence and leads of Kanishka, had come from the Japanese investigators who found a piece of the same Sanyo transistor embedded in the wall at Narita, that matched the transistor module, that Justice Kirpals committee had identified. Interestingly only 200 of these radios had ever been made, and all were shipped to Vancouver BC, and the buyers were tracked down, with the receipts & tapes being found in Reyats garage.

The RCMP and CSIS had interviewed and prepared scores of witnesses ranging from Tara Singh Hayer, to the ticketing agents to the airport staff even to the woman who was in a relationship with Bagri, whose car was used to ferry the bombs to the airport. Yet by the time the charges were filed and trial came along, most of the witnesses were either assassinated or disappeared or simply recanted.

Tara Singh Hayer, the Canadian Journalist-editor, who had given sworn testimony that Bagri confessed in London, that they had bombed the planes, despite being under RCMP protective detail was killed in cold blood at his home. The RCMP and the Crown did snare the small fry Reyat, who accepted the plea bargain for making the bombs, and also offered to testify in the trial against Bagri and Malik, but later recanted out of fear, for which he served almost 17 years for perjury.

As one who flew from Mumbai to Vancouver to attend the Criminal trials, it was a frustratingly painful process, watching witness by witness fall by the wayside over those few years. In the final 3 days, sitting barely 15 feet from the two killers, awaiting the verdict, I watched them smirk and giggle in the courtroom, fully secure in the knowledge that they had eliminated every witness, or piece of evidence that would tie them back to this dastardly crime.

It was also astounding to note the judge rewarding the accused, for every witness they had threatened. Some of Justice Josephson’s comments and mistakes in the order, would make a grown man blush. As veteran journalist & Khalistan expert, Terry Milewski writes in the foreword to “On Angels Wings — beyond the bombing of Air India 182”

“Justice was denied. Witnesses were intimidated or murdered. Wiretaps were inexplicably erased. Crucial evidence was discarded or ruled inadmissible on grounds that often seemed bizarre. A stinging sense of betrayal left some of the family members barely able to speak.”

“Canadian authorities had bungled the job a second time. First, they failed to prevent the bombing despite vivid and repeated warnings. Then, they failed to deliver justice” Had this been an Indian Court & judge, many would have quickly rushed to say that it was a prejudiced judgment, or alleged “favours” or even heard the crude insult “bik gaya”, however this was Canada, the law was flawed, but it was supposed to be majestic. The judgement was full of mistakes & legal and factual errors.

That day we were all crushed, our families had died again, this time murdered by the Canadian Justice system, and I said so across TV Channels in rage. To watch an open and shut case, be shut forever, and watch the prime accused drive off in their swanky limousines, was a pain too deep.

We families began our campaign for resolution to undo the wrongs of the criminal trial, but were faced with the principle of double jeopardy. The Crown counsel had decided not to pursue an appeal, given that it was witnesses who had turned hostile. To this day, I find that inexplicable, that an appeal was not preferred. I got the feeling that Canada just wanted to sandbag the entire event and forget those months of madness of 1985 and bury their heads.

A few months later, the families commemorated a mournful 20th anniversary in Cork Ireland, that brought the President of Ireland, the Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin, the opposition leader Mr. Stephen Harper and Mr. Prithiviraj Chauhan, then cabinet minister in Manmohan Singhs PMO, to Ahakista Ireland, to pay their respects to the departed families of Air India 182.

The anger of the families was palpable and we demanded answers, from Paul Martin, and Stephen Harper.  I got an opportunity to confront Martin and Harper, reminding them that the 329 souls in the ocean behind us, were waiting for answers. Even Chauhan was silent, facing the fury of the families and all of them gave us, what were hollow promises of the last 20 years.

However, Harper, it was in the following year, who after winning the elections, appointed a Crown commission into the Air India bombing, under the auspices of retired Supreme Court Justice John Major, to look into the mistakes that were made, without reopening or reexamining the criminal verdict.

The Enquiry announced with fanfare, turned out to be a damp squib, with Justice Major shorn even of the power of Subpoena, and being fed redacted and censored letters and evidence. Justice Major himself protested and threatened to resign publicly, before Harper ordered uncensored secret documents to be released and the power of summoning witnesses under oath.

I was fortunate to be one of the few who obtained individual standing in the case, it stretched from June 2006 to March 2010. It opened the worlds eyes to many truths, that CSIS and the Canadian Government had been watching Parmar and co since December 1984, and the agent in charge had requested for wire taps since then, on the homes of Parmar and other conspirators, which eventually began in March of 1985 – a full 90 days before the bombing took place.

There were recordings and transcripts of phone calls planning these bombings, and there were witnesses who had come forward to forewarn the RCMP of this conspiracy, all of which was taken with a pinch of salt. Those recordings were also carefully destroyed, leaving behind only the transcripts. The Indian government itself had sent out more than 31 Aide memoires to the Canadians warning that an Air India flight was being targeted by the Khalistanis, which were handed over to the RCMP, through the foreign office. The June 1st telex of Air India, had warned that a bombing was imminent on its only weekly flight and Top Security was essential. The US Secret Service had uncovered a plot to kill Rajiv Gandhi that same month, on his visit to Washington, to inaugurate the festival of India with President Ronald Reagan, and had visited Parmar in Vancouver less than 15 days before the bombing, to warn him against any misadventure, just as the FBI had uncovered evidence of a bombing plot. The CSIS agents had seen Parmar and others test fire a bomb in the woods outside Vancouver, 10 days prior, yet no one had acted. The failure of airport security in bomb detection both at Vancouver and Toronto was shocking to say the least.

The evidence and documents that came before the Commission, shockingly pointed to the fact that at least four agencies, CSIS, RCMP, FBI & Secret Service knew of a major plot to bomb the Air India aircraft, and the Indian governments warnings over the previous five months. It also became obvious that both the Canadians and the Americans had moles within the Khalistan setup, who could not be exposed. Yet the system slept and permitted 331 innocents die that 23rd day June in 1985.

Appearing before the John Major Enquiry in Ottawa, I placed my thoughts and lamented the huge failures of the RCMP and CSIS and the rivalry that caused the deaths of my family and 328 others, the systemic failures of policing and covert racism, and how both the governments had abandoned the families of Kanishka, and Had this been a plane full of white men, justice would have been delivered in a year.

Justice John Major in 2010 released his report in 5 volumes that covered the gross and grave negligence by Canadian authorities that caused the terrorist attack on the Air India 747. The systematic failure of the Intelligence apparatus coupled with the racial negligence had resulted in acquittals to the prime accused.

By then, Peace had returned to the Punjab and the politicians of India had virtually slept on this tragedy, closing their eyes to the growing storms of ISI backed Khalistan terror outfits, that were growing in other countries. The 2021 Pew research report indicated that 95% of Sikhs were happy and proud to be Indian and rejected the idea of Khalistan.

However, In the 40 years since that dark day in June, there has barely been a mention of the tragedy, by successive governments, other than perfunctory plaudits in tiny newspaper columns, and the one minutes silence observed in Indian Parliament in 2024 was only after Canada had observed a minute for Hardeep Singh Nijjar, another ISI trained Khalistani extremist who was killed in Canadian Khalistani gang wars.

The value of human life in India appears to be cheap, with hundreds dying of various causes daily. However, India cannot forget those who were felled by the Khalistani bombing of Air India 182 which remains until this date, the worst ever bombing in aviation history, or those thousands of Hindus and Sikhs who were butchered by Khalistanis during the turmoil in Punjab. India has been unable to balance the horrors of the Sikh pogrom of 1984 with the gruesome Kanishka bombing and the killings of innocents, but it’s time to man up.

The failure of India to bottle up the Khalistani genie overseas, has in the last 40 years, seen them emerge as a major politico-terror outfit with offices in capitals of the world.

The Khalistanis who worked silently for almost a decade post John Majors report, have been propagating a revisionist history in Canada and across the western world, focused on cruelly and ludicrously suggesting that Air India 182 bombing was the handiwork of the Indian government. Emboldened and well financed they along with Pakistan have begun a global campaign to besmirch India, and educate the Gen Z of their version of history. Some Khalistani affiliated Canadian MPs even seeking a fresh enquiry into the Air India Bombing to pin it on India, which was almost like stupidly saying that 911 was an American conspiracy.

Some years ago, on my annual pilgrimage to Ahakista to the beautiful memorial for Kanishka, I got an epiphany. I heard my Dad & family say that I had not done enough to spread the truth. As I prayed sending diyas into the Atlantic, I literally felt the 331 souls cry that their truth should not be obfuscated in politics, as they waited for Justice and their moment of truth. I returned and quit my Airline job, a few years early to spread the truth.

It has become my mission to debunk these theories, whether it is through my books, or travelling around the world, speaking at various forums, setting out the truth for all to hear, as the Kanishka families appeal for a memorial and a learning center in India and Canada, to warn the world that Khalistan terrorism is the other side of the coin of Islamist terror, both born and bred in the same ISI Pakistani stable.

Whether it is 26-11 or Parliament Attacks, Malegaon or the 1992 bomb blasts, Uri or Pulwama or Balakote or the many other terror attacks across India, isn’t it time that India recognizes terrorism for what it is and acknowledges it? Canada has built 4 civilian memorials across its country dedicated to the Kanishka bombing, as has Ireland. India is yet to recognize the world’s worst air bombing.

329 people with 82 children under the age of 12, died on Kanishka, including my baby sister Sandeeta, let that sink in, as you sip your cup of tea reading this.

Major Air Disasters

July 12, 1949: A KLM Lockheed Constellation crashed near Ghatkobar while attempting to land in bad weather. All 45 onboard die.

July 7, 1962: An Alitalia Flight 771 crashed into a hill northeast of Mumbai while on approach. All 94 aboard die.

July 28, 1963: United Arab Airlines Flight 869 crashed off Bombay Airport, killing all 63 onboard.

December 9, 1971: An Indian Airlines Avro aircraft (HS-748) crashes in the forests of Meghamalai. The flight was a round trip from Chennai to Trivandrum. The crash resulted in the deaths of 31 out of the 40 passengers on board with 9 survivors.

June 14, 1972: A Japan Airlines Flight 471 crashed near Palam Airport, killing 82 of 87 onboard and three on the ground. Total 85 people were killed.

May 31, 1973: An Indian Airlines Flight 440 crashed on approach to Palam Airport due to pilot error. 48 of 65 onboard die.      

October 12, 1976:  An Indian Airlines Flight 171 crashed at Bombay following an in-flight fire caused by an uncontained engine failure, killing all 95 onboard. 

January 1, 1978: An Air India Flight 855 crashed off the coast of Bandra, Mumbai after the failure of one of the flight instruments in the cockpit. All 213 aboard die.

October 19, 1988: An Indian Airlines Flight 113 crashed on its final approach to Ahmedabad killing 130 people.

February 14, 1990: An Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashed on its final approach to Bangalore airport killing 92 people.

August 16, 1991: An Indian Airlines Flight 257 crashed on descent into Imphal killing all 69 occupants.

April 26, 1993: Indian Airlines Flight 491 crashed into a truck at the end of the runway while taking off from Aurangabad, Maharashtra. It killed 55 people.

November 12, 1996: In 1996, Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision, Saudi Arabian Airlines Flight 763 collided in mid-air with Kazakhstan Airlines Flight 1907. All 349 on board in both planes were killed.

July 17, 2000: Alliance Air Flight 7412, a Boeing 737-2A8 crashed in a residential estate of Patna after the pilot lost control of the aircraft and stalled. Deaths included total 60 people.

May 22, 2010: An Air India Express Flight 812, a Boeing 737-800 flying the Dubai-Mangalore route overshot Runway 24 on landing at Mangalore International Airport killing 158 passengers on board.

June 12, 2025: An Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner en route to Gatwick, London carrying 242 people, crashes in a building in a suburb of Ahmedabad minutes after takeoff from Ahmedabad Airport. The crash killed 241 people on board and 38 people on the ground.

(The writer is the author of ‘On Angels Wings-beyond the bombing of Air India 182’. Views are personal)