As Gurpatwant Singh Pannun threatens again, here is a look at what happened to Air India Kanishka Flight in 1985
On 23 June 1985, an Air India flight was blown up mid-air, killing all 329 occupants, including 307 passengers and 22 crew members. Air India Flight 182, also known as Kanishka, was on its way from Montreal to Mumbai, carrying mostly Canadian citizens of Indian origin.
US-based Khalistani separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has warned Sikhs to avoid flying on Air India flights between 1 and 19 November, suggesting that the Tata Group airline could be targeted in some manner in the coming days. Pannun, an Indian-born US and Canadian citizen, issued the warning on Monday. The dates also coincide with the 40th anniversary of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi.
CREDIT: REUTERS
What Pannun said
¡°Do not fly Air India¡ We are imploring the Sikh ¡®panth¡¯ to refrain from travelling via Air India. From 1 November, there will be a global blockade. Air India won¡¯t be permitted to operate. Sikh ¡®panth¡¯, abstain from travelling by Air India after 1 November,¡± Pannun said in a video message.
Similar threats in the past
This is not the first time Pannun, who is listed among the most wanted terrorists in India, has issued a similar threat.
In 2023 too, Pannun had issued a similar threat and warned Sikhs not to travel on Air India.
CREDIT: REUTERS
While nothing untoward happened after Pannun's previous warning, authorities are not taking any chances. That is because one of the worst terror attacks targeting people of Indian origin was carried out by Khalistani terrorists on an Air India flight.
Air India Kanishka flight bombing
On 23 June 1985, an Air India flight was blown up mid-air, killing all 329 occupants, including 307 passengers and 22 crew members.
Air India Flight 182, also known as Kanishka, was on its way from Montreal to Mumbai, carrying mostly Canadian citizens of Indian origin. The Boeing 747-237B blew up during the Montreal-London leg of its journey.
CREDIT: WIKIMEDIA
The Air India Flight 182 disaster was the worst terrorist attack in Canadian history, and one of the deadliest acts of aviation terrorism ever.
The victims included 268 Canadian citizens, mostly of Indian origin, and 24 Indians. Only 131 bodies were retrieved from the sea.
CREDIT: WIKIMEDIA
How Canada failed to punish the terrorists
Despite the magnitude of the terrorist act, Canada failed to act against the Babbar Khalsa terrorists who were behind the attack. Only one person, Inderjit Singh Reyat, who pled guilty, was ever convicted, but Canada freed him in 2016.
For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
Read More
