Rapid Fire
Kanishka Tragedy
- 25 Jun 2024
- 1 min read
Recently, Canada has said that the investigation into the 1985 bombing of Air India Flight 182 is still "active and ongoing".
- On 23rd June 1985, Montreal-New Delhi Air India ‘Kanishka’ Flight 182 travelling from Canada to India via London, exploded off the Irish coast killing all 329 people on board, mostly Indians.
- Another explosion at Tokyo's Narita airport killed two Japanese baggage handlers while the flight was still in the air.
- Investigators later revealed that this bomb was connected to the attack on Flight 182 and was meant for another Air India flight to Bangkok, but it detonated prematurely.
- The bombing was attributed to Sikh militants (Khalistanis) in retaliation for 'Operation Bluestar' by the Indian Army in 1984.
- 'Operation Bluestar' was a military operation ordered by the Indian government to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
- The Khalistan movement is a separatist movement seeking to create a homeland for Sikhs by establishing an ethno‐religious sovereign state called Khalistan in the Punjab region.
Read More: 36th Anniversary of Operation Blue Star
