Montrealers will come together Tuesday evening to honour the victims on the 41st anniversary of the deadly bombing of Air India Flight 182.
Families and friends will gather at the Air India Memorial Site on Monk Island along the Lachine Canal to remember their loved ones lost in the bombing.
The tragic event occured on June 23, 1985 when 329 people, including 268 Canadians, were killed when a bomb exploded aboard the aircraft en route from Toronto to Delhi. The plane went down over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Ireland.
It was not only the deadliest terrorist attack on Canadian soil, but also the wort case of aviation terrorism in history before 9/11.
The memorial site in Montreal was built by the victims’ families, the site stands as a lasting place of remembrance and a call for peace. Since 2005, the federal government has observed June 23 as National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism in memory of those who have lost their lives through acts of terror in Canada and around the world.
Among those keeping the memories of victims alive is 89-year-old Mahesh Sharma, a Concordia University professor who lost his wife Uma, daughters Sandhya and Swati, and mother-in-law Shakuntala in the attack.
Sharma created scholarships in their names at McGill University, Concordia University, and Royal West Academy, ensuring the memory of his loved ones lives on through education.
Despite the scale of the tragedy, Sharma told CityNews at last year’s anniversary that the memorial and the event remain largely unknown.
“Ninety percent of Canadians don’t know,” he said at the time. “Even in Montreal, people don’t know this site exists.”
More than four decades after the tragedy, justice for the victims has eluded.
Family members like Raman Chopra, president of the National Association of Canadians of Origins in India (Montreal), have criticized the handling of the case and the broader response from Canadian authorities.
The trial began after nearly 18 years after the bombing after what was the longest and most expensive investigation in Canadian history.
Only person was convicted. Inderjit Singh Reyaal was found guilty of manslaughter in connection with the construction of the bombs.
Two other men — Ripudaman Singh Malik & Ajaib Singh Bagri — who were charged for their involvement in this terrorist attack were found not guilty in 2005.
Malik was later shot dead outside his business in Surrey, B.C. in July 2022.
