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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Arvinder Singh Lovely, part of a seven member Indian delegation to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Air India Kanishka Bombing in which over 300 people were killed, termed the incident as one of the "most devastating" terrorist attacks.
Today marks the 40th anniversary of the Kanishka bombing. On 23 June 1985, Air India Flight 182 was blown up by the Canada-based Khalistani terrorist group Babbar Khalsa near Cork, Ireland, resulting in the deaths of all 329 passengers, including over 80 children. The Indian delegation led by Union Minister Hardeep Puri is in Ireland to attend the 40th anniversary of the memorial of the Kanishka terror attack. BJP MLA Lovely further said that Indian government stands with the families of the victim. "Air India Kanishka Bombing was one of the most devastating terrorist attacks. The way the family members of the victims have suffered, they have all gathered here. We can still feel their pain. Our Prime Minister always talks about peace across the globe. Today, an Indian delegation is here to pay tributes to the victims and assure their families that the Indian government stands with them..." Lovely told ANI. Earlier today, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri paid tributes to the victims of the Kanishka bombing and gave a call to bring an end to terrorism and extremism. Calling Canada a valued partner and friend of India, he called upon them to deepen the bilateral collaboration in countering this. Puri made the remarks on Monday from the Ahakista Memorial in Cork, Ireland. On the solemn event, Union Minister Puri remembered the victims with deep sorrow and heavy hearts, who passed away forty years ago. In his speech, he asked the world to come together not only in mourning but also in collective proactive efforts to counter terrorism. "On behalf of India, I call upon the global community to remember our shared responsibility. I call upon our Canadian friends in particular to deepen our bilateral collaboration in countering this. Canada is a valued partner and a friend of India. We share vibrant cultural and economic relations with each other, and we are bound by democratic traditions, and those ideals require us to act together against all forms of extremism and terrorism. When separatist violence, and separatist voices find sanctuary, when extremist figures glorify violence-- they threaten not just the people whose lives they take away, they threaten societies at large," Puri stated. He said that by working together, sharing intelligence, shutting off funding channels, countering radicalisation, it can be ensured that those who continue to promote hate and terror cannot succeed. "India stands ready to do more. Our security agencies, our intelligence operators, and our diplomatic channels remain committed to partnering with Canada and all other countries. Let us redouble our efforts to ensure that what happened on June 23, 1985 is never repeated, not here, not in India, not anywhere in the world," he said. Calling the air crash as one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in aviation history, Puri said that it has left scars that have not healed even after 40 years. The delegation led by Hardeep Singh Puri includes BJP MLA in Delhi Assembly, Arvinder Singh Lovely, Minister of State in the Uttar Pradesh government, Baldev Singh Aulakh; BJP MLA from Sadulshahar in Ganganagar, Rajasthan Assembly, Gurveer Singh Brar; BJP MLA from RS Pura in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Narinder Singh Raina; BJP MLA from Kashipur in the Uttarakhand Assembly, Trilok Singh Cheema, BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh and India's Ambassador to Ireland, Akhilesh Mishra. (ANI)
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