In a statement on the 39th anniversary of the Air India 'Kanishka' flight bombing, the Indian High Commission in Canada said 'any act of glorifying terrorism' should be condemned by all peace-loving countries, adding that 'such actions are allowed to be routine on many occasions in Canada',
In a strong message to Canada, the Indian High Commission on Monday said acts of glorifying terrorsim are "allowed to be routine on many occasions" in the country. The statement by Indian High Commission came on the 39th anniversary of the Air India 'Kanishka' flight bombing and amid strained India-Canada ties over Khalistani extremism.
On June 23, 1985, a Montreal-New Delhi Air India Flight 182 or the 'Kanishka' flight exploded 45 minutes before its scheduled landing at London's Heathrow Airport, killing all 329 people on board, most of them Canadians of Indian descent. The Air India flight was named after the Kushan dynasty emperor Kanishka.
The bombing was allegedly carried out by Sikh militants in retaliation to the 'Operation Bluestar'.
"...Any act of glorifying terrorism, including the bombing of Al-182 in 1985, is deplorable and should be condemned by all peace-loving countries and people. It is unfortunate that such actions are allowed to be routine on many occasions in Canada," the Indian High Commission in Ottawa, Canada, said in a post on microblogging platform X on Monday.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on microblogging platform X on Sunday said the anniversary of the bombing is a reminder why terrorism should never be tolerated. "Today marks the 39th anniversary of one of the worst acts of terrorism in history," Jaishankar said on 'X'.
"Pay my homage to the memory of the 329 victims of AI 182 'Kanishka' who were killed this day in 1985. My thoughts are with their families," he said.
"The anniversary is a reminder why terrorism should never be tolerated," he added.
Jaishankar's comments came two days after India strongly objected to Canadian parliament observing "one-minute silence" in memory of Khalistan extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was gunned down in British Columbia in June last year.
The Canadian parliament observed "one minute silence" to mark one year of the killing of Nijjar, who was declared a terrorist by India and was shot dead outside a gurdwara in British Columbia on June 18 last year.
India has been insisting that the Canadian authorities take action against those advocating violence amid relations between the two countries coming under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September last year of a "potential" involvement of Indian agents in Nijjar's killing.