Canadian intel agency blames local Khalistan extremists for ’85 attack

CAnada’s intelligence federal agency agency has for the number one clip explicitly blamed Canada-based Khalistani extremists (CBKEs) for the 1985 bombardment of Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182, in a statement marking the 41st anniversary of the country’s deadliest terror attack.The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) on Tuesday said, “On June 23, 1985, a bomb planted by Canada‑based Khalistani extremists destroyed the aircraft, killing everyone on board—most of them Canadians. It remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canada’s history and a defining moment for our national security community.”While previous CSIS reports flagged Canada-based Khalistani extremists as a security threat, the agency had not in recent years directly attributed the Kanishka bombing to them in such explicit terms.The statement added that the agency was less than a year old at the time, and the “Kanishka tragedy shaped its evolution.”“Over the past four decades, we have remained committed to protecting Canadians from political, religious, and ideologically motivated violence,” the CSIS noted.The Montreal-New Delhi Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182 exploded 45 minutes before it was to have landed at London’s Heathrow Airport on June 23, 1985, killing all 329 people on board, most of them Canadians of Indian descent.In the last two years, CSIS’ annual reports have stated that Canada-based Khalistani extremists (CBKEs) continue to “pose a national security threat” to the country.In the 2025 annual report, the intelligence agency said, “Ongoing involvement in violent extremist activities by CBKEs continues to pose a national security threat to Canada and to Canadian interests.” It added that some CBKEs were “well connected to Canadian citizens who leverage Canadian institutions to promote their violent extremist agenda and collect funds from unsuspecting community members that are then diverted toward violent activities.”The report noted that there were no CBKE-related attacks in the country in 2025 and added that some Canadians “participate in legitimate and peaceful campaigning to support the Khalistan separatist movement.”“Only a small group of individuals who use Canada as a base to promote, fundraise, or plan violence primarily in India are considered Khalistani extremists,” it said.The report prefaced its remarks on CBKEs and pointed out that last year marked the 40th anniversary of the bombing of Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182, whose suspects were pro-Khalistan extremists. “It remains to this day the deadliest terrorist attack in Canadian history, with 329 people killed, most of them Canadians,” it said.The concerns over the presence of CBKEs in the country were similar to those highlighted in the agency’s 2024 report. However, references specifically linking the Kanishka bombing to pro-Khalistan extremism were largely absent from reports after 2018, during the tenure of former prime minister Justin Trudeau.Reacting to the CSIS statement, the Hindu Canadian Foundation (HCF) welcomed “the clear, fact‑based stance” taken by the agency.“This clarity matters. Victims deserve justice,” the HCF said, adding that this reinforced its standing call “to designate CBKEs as a terrorist entity to safeguard Canadians from all walks of life.”Ruchi Wali, who has been an outspoken critic of pro-Khalistan extremism in Canada, described the CSIS statement as a “welcome change.”EOM