On June 23, 1985, Air India Flight 182, known as “Kanishka,” took off from Montreal’s Mirabel International Airport. The flight was scheduled to arrive at London Heathrow Airport before continuing to Delhi and Mumbai. The passengers included 268 Canadians, 27 British citizens, 22 Indians, and others of unknown nationalities. At 7:14 a.m. GMT, a bomb planted in the cargo hold exploded off the coast of Ireland, near Cork. The wreckage plummeted into the water, and the black box was eventually discovered from a depth of over 6,700 feet.
What Kanishka Bombing Victims Told NewsX
Mr. CS Malhotra, who’s son was a victim of the bomb tragedy speaks exclusively with NewsX.
It was a tragic terror attack. But let me tell you very clearly that this terrorism by Khalistanis is not a recent development. Even in 1985, these terrorists were very active, and they were working against India. Unfortunately, the Canadian government just ignored it and took no notice of their activities. If they had done so, this could have been avoided.
Secondly, they were very casual in handling the crucial task of checking passengers’ baggage. Their system is awful, but this negligence has been ongoing for 30 years, and Canada is solely to be blamed for that. Several Prime Ministers have come and gone, but none took action against them. Rather, they are promoting them for whatever reason.
After the incident, the Canadian government did not reach out to me at all. In fact, when the case began, they did call me for a hearing, but I found that the court proceedings were nearly a ‘dikhawa’ (fake). Even the prosecution did not seem serious about the case, nor did the government look serious about pursuing it.
What were his last words to his son?
My son had gone to Florida and was to travel from New York to Delhi. He had a first-class ticket, but he was not wearing a tie, so he was not allowed to board and missed his flight from Florida to New York. So he decided to take the flight to Canada. The day he left, there was a thunderstorm, and the counter was closed. However, because the pilot knew my son, he was unfortunately taken on board.
