Indian, Irish, Canadian diplomats pay tribute to 1985 Air India bombing victims

IRish and canadian river diplomats united amerind officials in young new delhi on Tuesday to commemorate the 1985 bombing of Air India flight 182 by Khalistani terrorists and to pay tribute to the 329 victims of the attack.Canada’s high commissioner Chris Cooter and Ireland’s deputy ambassador Raymond Mullen joined families of the victims of the Air India flight 182 disaster at the commemoration ceremony at Canada House in New Delhi. The Indian side was represented by Siddhartha Nath, joint secretary (administration) in the external affairs ministry.This was the second consecutive year that the three countries jointly commemorated what was the worst act of aviation terrorism until the 9/11 attacks in the US. Other members of the diplomatic community also attended the ceremony.Participants laid wreaths at a memorial tree planted at Canada House, the residence of the Canadian envoy, in 2025 in remembrance of the victims and observed a moment of silence. Guests signed the remembrance book in honour of those who lost their lives. Speaking on the occasion, Cooter said: “Forty-one years after the Air India Flight 182 tragedy, we remember the 329 innocent lives lost and stand in solidarity with their families. The bombing remains a painful chapter in Canada’s history and a solemn reminder that terrorism has no place in our societies.“As we honour those who were taken from us, together with India, Ireland and our international partners, we reaffirm our shared commitment to remembrance, justice and a future rooted in peace, security, and compassion.”Mullen said the gathering honoured “those who were lost” and acknowledged the “families who have carried this loss with remarkable courage for more than four decades”. He added, “Terrorism leaves lasting scars, but it cannot extinguish our shared humanity. By remembering, standing together and fostering understanding, we reaffirm our resolve to reject hatred and build a more peaceful future.Air India flight 182 was operating on the Montreal-London-Delhi route when the Boeing 747 was downed by a bomb planted by Khalistani terrorists at an altitude of 9,400 metres on June 23, 1985. The aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while in Irish airspace.A total of 329 people were killed, including 268 Canadians, 27 British citizens, 22 Indian citizens, 10 Americans and two people whose nationality was not definitively recorded. Most of the Canadian nationals were of Indian origin.Relatives of the victims travelled to Ireland in the days following the bombing. The Irish Naval Service led a recovery operation to retrieve the remains of victims and wreckage of the flight. Many relatives stayed with the people of Ahakista in County Cork during this time.A permanent memorial was erected by the village in 1986, and a commemoration is held there each year on the morning of June 23.June 23 is also observed in Canada as the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism. Memorials across the country in Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa stand as permanent tributes to those who were lost to this tragedy.In a statement to commemorate the day, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the bombing “remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canada’s history”.“The legacy of Air India Flight 182 demands remembrance, but also vigilance. Canada’s government is confronting and condemning violent extremism in all its forms, with new legislation to defend the safety and security of Canadians, strengthen our national security institutions, and disrupt terrorist financing and support networks. We are supporting frontline community-based intervention programs and providing our security agencies with stronger tools to better detect, prevent, and disrupt terrorist activity,” he said.“The first job of the government is to protect Canadians, and that will always be our mission and our focus,” Carney said.In March, Mahesh Chandra Sharma, who lost his family in the tragedy, was honoured with the Order of Canada. A professor at Concordia University, he established scholarships in honour of family members who were among the victims of the bombing.