The Kanishka crash has had a deep resonance in this country. It was India’s first real brush with international terrorism. The deaths of those 329 men, women and children — yes, there were 80 children on board Air-India Flight 182 that crashed into the Atlantic off the Irish coast — have weighed heavily on the nation’s consciousness these last 20 years. Therefore the judgment of the Vancouver court freeing the two accused, Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, at the end of an investigation that had gone on for two decades and a trial that had spanned 19 months, cannot but foster a sense of deep disappointment in this country, a feeling that justice has not been done in this case. For the families who have borne their irreparable loss with such fortitude over all these years, this denouement in court will only add to the burden of their grief.Judge Josephson did understand what this attack signified. In his verdict he stated with clarity that “these hundreds of men, women and children were entirley innocent victims of a diabolical act of terrorism unparalleled until recently in aviation history”. That unstated reference to 9/11 only underlined the enormity of the crime in the judge’s perception. But the prosecution — the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian intelligence agency — despite their expensive and extensive exertions just could not establish the guilt of the two men beyond reasonable doubt. This could be the result of some extremely unprofessional handling of evidence — crucial taped material was lost — an inadequate understanding of the nature of Sikh militancy and the networks that sustained it and, possibly, an insufficient commitment to the case. The passage of time was also certainly a contributory factor. In 20 years, memories fade, responses get blunted, witnesses pass away, the will to unearth the truth weakens.While this verdict brings no sense of closure to this case, it does come as a reminder of the road India has travelled from the days when it was in the grip of sectarian violence and militancy that had almost lost it the state of Punjab; and lost Punjab an entire decade of peace, stability and growth. It is with profound relief that we can tell ourselves that this dark chapter has at least come to an end.
