Remembering Kanishka

Describing the bombing as a ‘‘dreadful’’ and ‘‘wicked’’ event, McAleese said: ‘‘This is not how things are supposed to be. No one on that plane on that fateful day had this destination in mind.’’ Martin said the bombing was one of the greatest tragedies that Canada had ever suffered. ‘‘The loss haunts us to this day,’’ he said in a statement.

The Canadian government paid $2,500 per person to the victims’ relatives to attend the ceremony, the biggest ever for those killed in the disaster on June 23, 1985.

In March, the Canadian Supreme Court had acquitted Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, the main accused in the case, due to lack of evidence, triggering a wave of protests from family members of the victims.

Minister of State Prithviraj Chavan also paid tributes to the victims of the bombing. Indian Ambassador Saurabh Kumar, Canadian Opposition Leader Stephen Harper and British Columbia Premier Gordon Campell were also present at the ceremony. Cork County Mayor Paddy Sheehan delivered the welcoming remarks, after which, families assembled around the sundial erected to mark the tragedy and observed a minute’s silence.

Every year at 8.13 a.m. on June 23, the shadow of the sundial at the site is meant to touch the precise spot, marking the time when the Air India plane disappeared from radar and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. At the memorial site, the inscription on the sundial reads: ‘‘Time flies, suns rise and shadows fall, let it pass by, love reigns forever over all.’’

McAleese lay a wreath, along with a representative of the victims’ families. Lamps were also lit in memory of the victims and placed in the sea.

A special memorial service was held on Tuesday at the Cork University Hospital, which served as a morgue in the 1985 bombing. Members of the staff, who were involved in the recovery operation 20 years ago, were also present.