(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Two-in-five adults in Canada believe the federal government should apologize for the intelligence, policing and regulatory failures surrounding the 1985 Air India bombing, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 45 per cent of respondents agree with this rationale, while 30 per cent disagree.

On Jun. 23, 1985, a mid-air explosion killed 329 people on board Air India Flight 182. Two Japanese baggage-handlers died in a related incident at Tokyo’s Narita Airport.

Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri were arrested in October 2000, in connection with the bombing of Air India Flight 182. The investigation and legal proceedings cost an estimated $107 million U.S. Crown prosecutors argued that Malik and Bagri were members of a Sikh militant group who sought revenge for the Indian Army’s 1984 raid of Amritsar’s Golden Temple—Sikhism’s holiest shrine. During the trial, several witnesses claimed the two men were involved in the bombings.

In March 2005, British Columbia Supreme Court judge Ian Josephson acquitted Malik and Bagri of all charges, citing lack of substantial evidence.

A public judicial inquiry, headed by former Supreme Court justice John Major, concluded its examination of the bombing on Feb. 15. On that same day, Jacques Shore—who represents the Air India Victims’ Families Association—declared: "The shock, pain, grief, and disillusionment felt by the families cannot be adequately expressed in these submissions. The government not only failed to protect their loved ones, it also failed to successfully investigate and prosecute those responsible for this heinous crime."

Polling Data

The families of Canadians who died in the 1985 Air India bombing have said they want a formal apology from the prime minister, due to the intelligence, policing and regulatory failures surrounding the case. Do you think the Canadian government should apologize?

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,085 Canadian adults, conducted on Feb. 19 and Feb. 20, 2008. Margin of error is 3.0 per cent.

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