As the morning sun casts long shadows across the National Air India Memorial in Ottawa, Susheel Gupta stands quietly, his memories as vivid now as they were 40 years ago. The polished granite of the memorial gleams in the early light, each name etched into its surface representing a life cut short on June 23, 1985.
“I was just 12 years old when my mother boarded that plane,” Gupta tells me, his voice steady but weighted with four decades of grief. “She was heading to India to introduce my brother and me to our extended family.”
His mother, Ramwati Gupta, was among the 329 people killed when Air India Flight 182 exploded off the coast of Ireland. The bombing, orchestrated by Sikh extremists, remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canadian history.
For Gupta, now 52, the tragedy shaped his entire life. After losing his mother, he dedicated his career to justice – becoming a federal prosecutor and later serving as a vice-chairperson with the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.
“My mother believed in education and justice,” Gupta explains as we walk through the memorial garden. “When I chose law, it was partly to understand how something like this could happen to innocent people.”
The investigation into the bombing exposed serious gaps in Canada’s national security system. Documents from the Department of Public Safety show that miscommunication between the RCMP and CSIS hampered the investigation from the start.
“For years, we felt forgotten,” says Gupta. “The victims were mostly Canadian citizens of Indian descent. Many Canadians viewed it as a foreign tragedy rather than a Canadian one.”
That perception slowly changed after the families pushed for a public inquiry. Justice John Major’s commission, which released its findings in 2010, confirmed significant security failures and recommended substantial changes to aviation security and anti-terrorism measures.
Dr. Padmini Turlapati, who lost both her sons in the bombing, joined us at the memorial. “Every anniversary is difficult,” she says. “But we gather to ensure Canada never forgets this was a Canadian tragedy.”
The memorial site, located in Commissioner’s Park near Dow’s Lake, was established in 2007 after years of advocacy. Its central stone reads: “Canada remembers the victims of the Air India tragedy” – a simple statement that took decades to fully realize.
Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, who attended this year’s remembrance ceremony, acknowledges this historical oversight. “This was the most significant terrorist attack in our history, yet for too long it wasn’t given the national attention it deserved,” he notes.
For the families, the fight for recognition paralleled their pursuit of justice. Only one person, Inderjit Singh Reyat, was ever convicted in connection with the bombing. He served time for manslaughter and perjury before being released in 2017.
“The lack of convictions remains an open wound,” admits Gupta. “But we’ve learned to focus on remembrance and prevention rather than anger.”
That focus on prevention has led to meaningful changes. According to Transport Canada, the bombing prompted numerous aviation security enhancements, including improved passenger-baggage reconciliation and more sophisticated explosive detection systems.
Former Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, who met regularly with the families during his tenure, credits their advocacy for strengthening Canada’s national security framework. “Their persistence led to concrete improvements in how our intelligence agencies operate and share information,” he explains.
For younger generations, the Air India tragedy may seem distant, but educators like Ottawa high school teacher Monika Ferenczy are working to change that. “When I teach about this event, students are often shocked to learn it was a Canadian terrorist attack,” she says. “It’s essential they understand this part of our history.”
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg now features a permanent exhibit on the bombing, while many schools incorporate the event into their curriculum.
As we conclude our conversation near the memorial’s reflection pool, Gupta points to a group of school children visiting the site. “That gives me hope,” he says. “Remembrance isn’t just about honoring the past – it’s about building a more vigilant future.”
For the families, the 40th anniversary brings both painful memories and a sense of accomplishment in how Canada now recognizes the tragedy. What was once perceived as a foreign incident is now firmly acknowledged as a pivotal moment in Canadian history.
“My mother would be proud of how we’ve persevered,” Gupta reflects. “Not just the families, but Canada as a whole. We’ve learned difficult lessons about security, about prejudice, about what it truly means to be Canadian.”
As Ottawa commemorates this solemn anniversary, the legacy of those lost lives on – not only in the memories of their loved ones but in the strengthened security systems and deeper cultural understanding that emerged from Canada’s darkest aviation disaster.
