As Canada ‘honours’ Nijjar, India reminds world of Kanishka flight disaster
NEW DELHI: India stands at the forefront of countering the menace of terrorism and works closely with all nations to tackle this global threat, India’s Consulate General in Vancouver said on Wednesday.
The remark comes after Canada’s parliament marked the first death anniversary of designated Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar by holding a moment of silence in the House of Commons.
Nijjar was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18, 2023. Canadian police have arrested four Indian nationals in connection with the murder.
‘Most heinous terror-related air disaster’
The consulate also announced that it will be holding a memorial service on June 23 at the Air India Memorial at Stanley Park in Vancouver.
It encouraged members of the Indian diaspora to join the event in a show of “solidarity against terrorism”.
“June 23 marks the 39th anniversary of the cowardly terrorist bombing of Air India flight 182 (Kanishka), in which 329 innocent victims, including 86 children, lost their lives in one of the most heinous terror-related air disasters in the history of civil aviation,” said the Consulate General of India in Vancouver.
329 people killed
The Montreal-New Delhi Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182 exploded 45 minutes before it was scheduled to land at London’s Heathrow Airport on June 23, 1985, killing all 329 people on board, most of them Canadians of Indian descent.
The bombing was blamed on Sikh militants in retaliation to ‘Operation Bluestar’.
India-Canada strained ties
The memorial service hosted by India comes amid strain in New Delhi’s ties with Canada over the issue of Khalistan terrorists after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged in September last year of the “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Nijjar.
India has dismissed Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd and motivated”.
India has been maintaining that the main issue between the two countries is that of Canada giving space to pro-Khalistan elements operating from Canadian soil with impunity.
