More than three decades after the bombing of Air India Flight 182, relatives of the 329 victims continue to seek closure. This week, a British coroner issued a formal request for the resolution of outstanding DNA identification issues, highlighting the enduring pain of the families. The flight, en route from Montreal to London, was brought down by a bomb planted by Sikh extremists on June 23, 1985.
Despite a lengthy Canadian inquiry and criminal trials in Canada and India, many remains were never identified or returned. The coroner's call, made in a letter to the UK Ministry of Justice, urges authorities to pursue new forensic techniques to match unidentified remains with waiting families. The request underscores the institutional failures that have prolonged the ordeal.
For the bereaved, the wait for definitive identification is a daily reminder of a justice delayed. The coroner's intervention may prompt renewed efforts, but for many, it is a bitter acknowledgment of decades of neglect.
