CBC News has learned that the families of the Air India bombing victims have sent letters to the RCMP and the prime minister expressing their dismay that the investigation into the crash is now inactive.
The RCMP, however, says the investigation remains open and that any new or credible information will be investigated, although there are no other persons of interest or suspects under consideration.
The RCMP held a meeting in Toronto on Sept. 12, according to letters viewed by CBC News, where the families say they were told there is no further information to pursue in the case. CBC News has spoken with several people who say they attended the meeting.
Sanjay Lazar, who lost his parents and sister on the 1985 flight bombing, said the families had no idea what was coming in the meeting they’d been called to in a hotel near the Toronto airport.
“They said that we don’t have any more leads. We cannot pursue and we need to identify significant persons in this. And therefore we are going to start, well, winding down,” Lazar told CBC News in an interview Monday.
“You can’t just abandon the whole investigation purely because you feel you’ve reached a dead end.”
On June 23, 1985, Air India Flight 182 took off from Toronto to Mumbai with stops in Montreal, London, England, and New Delhi. A bomb in a suitcase in the hold exploded, and the plane broke apart over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Ireland.
All 329 people on board were killed, most of whom were Canadian citizens. The bombings are considered the worst mass murder in Canadian history. Investigations and a public inquiry exposed major Canadian intelligence and security failures.
Only one person was ever convicted in connection with the bombing: bomb-maker Inderjit Singh Reyat. He served his 30-year sentence and was released in 2016. Two other men were tried and acquitted in 2005. One of those men, Ripudaman Singh Malik, was shot and killed in 2022. Another suspect was killed in India in 1992.
Rob Alexander, who lost his father in the explosion, says the meeting was “long overdue,” noting it had been many years since the RCMP spoke with the families. He told CBC News about 40 or 50 family members were in attendance Sept. 12, and another 20 or so connected through Zoom.
“They told us that because they felt they had exhausted most of the strings of evidence that they had been following over the years, they were kind of parking the investigation and kind of going inactive,” Alexander said.
“And the family members were utterly shocked.
“We know it’s been a long time, and things get exhausted and people die off and we get that. But to shelve the whole thing and make it inactive, it is a big slap in the face to the memories of the people that we lost.”
RCMP acknowledged the meeting in a statement to CBC News after this article was initially published, but said police will still investigate any credible information that comes forward in the case.
“Family members were provided with an update concerning an individual (widely referred to as Mr. X) who had come to the attention of investigators. Over time, while an individual was identified, no definitive link to the events under investigation could be established,” RCMP said.
“Today, while there are no other persons of interest or suspects under consideration, the investigation remains open. If new or credible information comes forward, it will be investigated. The RCMP has always endeavoured to seek justice for the victims of Air India and that commitment stands.”
Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said in a statement Monday evening that he trusts any new information that comes to light “will be carefully reviewed by the RCMP.”
“We will continue honouring the memory of those who were killed and supporting efforts to ensure that this tragedy is never forgotten,” he said.
‘Utter shock and horror’
The letter from the RCMP addressed to “The families of the victims of Air India Flight 182, 1985,” which has been viewed by CBC News, invited family members to attend the meeting that would “provide an update on the current status of the Air India Flight 182 investigation, including an outline of future steps.”
“We recognize that this continues to be a deeply personal and difficult experience, and we are committed to keeping you informed and supported,” reads the invitation.
Sudha Berry, whose 16-year-old brother Sharad was killed, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney and several other ministers and RCMP officials to express her family’s “utter dismay.”
“The decision took most of the families of the passengers that perished on that flight completely by surprise. We have waited patiently for 41 years for the RCMP to deliver justice in the names of those we lost,” Berry wrote.
“The decision is a betrayal of the families’ trust and a complete dereliction of the RCMP’s duty towards them.”
Lazar wrote in a letter to the RCMP commissioner that he was “struck down by lightning” and experienced “utter shock and horror” when RCMP informed the families the investigation is inactive.
“Many family members were distraught at hearing this,” Lazar wrote in the letter dated Sept. 17 and obtained by CBC News.
He described the Sept. 12 meeting as “a gut wrenching kick in my abdomen, and it brought back dark memories for me, of that young 17-year-old kid who watched bodies & body parts coming into Cork for almost 25 days on that rainy month of June.”
Bob Rae, Canada’s former United Nations ambassador who did a preliminary Air India inquiry in 2005, told CBC News it was wrong for the RCMP to consider winding down the investigation and that he’s “deeply troubled” by their approach.
“It’s not a smart approach or a smart move,” Rae said, adding it’s not going to help Canada’s reputation in India.
“This is the most serious mass crime committed in Canadian history.”
On June 23, 1985, Air India Flight 182 took off from a Montreal airport. As it approached Ireland, a bomb in a suitcase exploded in its hold. All 329 people aboard the plane were killed. It’s been called Canada’s ‘worst act of terrorism’ and remains the deadliest attack in Canadian history — but an inquiry showed how the investigation into it fell apart.
