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Loss Of Faith: How The Air India Bombers Got Away With Murder
Riveting and shocking, Loss of Faith is essential reading for all Canadians.
On June 23, 1985, Canada found itself on the international terrorism map when two bombs built in B.C. detonated within an hour of each other on opposite sides of the world, killing 329 men, women, and children.
Canadian Sikh separatists, upset at the Indian government for attacking their religion’s holiest shrine, the Golden Temple, were immediately suspected by the RCMP of perpetrating the worst act of aviation terrorism before Sept. 11, 2001. But while police agencies scrambled to infiltrate a close-knit immigrant community and collect evidence against the suspects, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service was destroying taped telephone calls between the same people the RCMP was investigating.
For years those at the centre of the terrorist plot tried to protect their dark secret. Two Sikh newspaper publishers who overheard an alleged confession by one of the bombers were assassinated. Other potential witnesses were threatened and intimidated. Journalists who wrote about the suspects were targeted by death threats and harassment. The suspects founded charities and participated in political parties, attending fundraising dinners for premiers and prime ministers. And the families of the victims fought to be recognized for their unimaginable loss as the result of an act of terrorism plotted in Canada. When charges were finally laid against three Sikh separatists, the families believed justice was almost theirs. But their faith was shaken when one suspect pleaded guilty to manslaughter and got a five-year sentence for more than three hundred deaths.
The Air-India trial judge spoke in his ruling of the “the senseless horror” of the bombings. He called the plot “a diabolical act of terrorism” with “roots in fanaticism at its basest and most inhumane level.” He then acquitted Sikh leaders Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri on all charges, leaving the victims’ families reeling and the biggest case in Canadian history officially unsolved.
Kim Bolan is an award-winning investigative reporter who has covered the Air-India bombing case since the day Flight 182 went down off the coast of Ireland. Her work on the Air-India story has taken her to Punjab five times over the last twenty years where she met with militant Sikh separatist leaders and victims of the violence. She also followed Air-India mastermind Talwinder Singh Parmar to Pakistan before his 1992 slaying and chased down other suspects in England and across Canada. But she faced the most danger at home in Vancouver where the stories she uncovered about the Air-India case led to a series of death threats against her.
On June 23, 1985, Canada found itself on the international terrorism map when two bombs built in B.C. detonated within an hour of each other on opposite sides of the world, killing 329 men, women, and children.
Canadian Sikh separatists, upset at the Indian government for attacking their religion’s holiest shrine, the Golden Temple, were immediately suspected by the RCMP of perpetrating the worst act of aviation terrorism before Sept. 11, 2001. But while police agencies scrambled to infiltrate a close-knit immigrant community and collect evidence against the suspects, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service was destroying taped telephone calls between the same people the RCMP was investigating.
For years those at the centre of the terrorist plot tried to protect their dark secret. Two Sikh newspaper publishers who overheard an alleged confession by one of the bombers were assassinated. Other potential witnesses were threatened and intimidated. Journalists who wrote about the suspects were targeted by death threats and harassment. The suspects founded charities and participated in political parties, attending fundraising dinners for premiers and prime ministers. And the families of the victims fought to be recognized for their unimaginable loss as the result of an act of terrorism plotted in Canada. When charges were finally laid against three Sikh separatists, the families believed justice was almost theirs. But their faith was shaken when one suspect pleaded guilty to manslaughter and got a five-year sentence for more than three hundred deaths.
The Air-India trial judge spoke in his ruling of the “the senseless horror” of the bombings. He called the plot “a diabolical act of terrorism” with “roots in fanaticism at its basest and most inhumane level.” He then acquitted Sikh leaders Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri on all charges, leaving the victims’ families reeling and the biggest case in Canadian history officially unsolved.
Kim Bolan is an award-winning investigative reporter who has covered the Air-India bombing case since the day Flight 182 went down off the coast of Ireland. Her work on the Air-India story has taken her to Punjab five times over the last twenty years where she met with militant Sikh separatist leaders and victims of the violence. She also followed Air-India mastermind Talwinder Singh Parmar to Pakistan before his 1992 slaying and chased down other suspects in England and across Canada. But she faced the most danger at home in Vancouver where the stories she uncovered about the Air-India case led to a series of death threats against her.
- GenresIndia
392 pages, Hardcover
First published September 13, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 14, 2025
This book is a searing investigation into one of Canada’s most devastating terrorist attacks. Through meticulous research and fearless journalism, Bolan exposes a disturbing interplay of extremism, government incompetence, and judicial failures that allowed the AI182 bombers, who killed 331 civilians, including women and children, to escape justice.
The book starts with the sombre depiction of events just before the bombing and the following rescue efforts. This is followed by a turn to the rise of the Khalistan movement in Canada, detailing how radicalized Khalistanis (not Sikhs) like Talwinder Parmar, Ajaib Bagri, and Ripudaman Malik infiltrated religious and community institutions. Bolan unflinchingly chronicles the financial networks supporting these extremists, including Malik’s substantial donations to Babbar Khalsa and the fraudulent schemes they employed to enrich themselves while advancing a violent agenda.
A particularly scathing chapter outlines the shocking negligence, incompetence and lack of coordination between CSIS and RCMP. Despite numerous warnings and visible signs of extremist activity, they failed to prevent the tragedy. The incompetence extended to botched surveillance, missed confessions, and ill-conceived deals—most notably allowing bomb-maker Inderjeet Reyat.
Bolan also sheds light on the intimidation and violence faced by those who challenged Khalistani extremists like the journalist Tara Singh Hayer, assassinated in 1998. Bolan herself endured death threats, surveillance, and public harassment. The author also dismantles the flawed 2005 acquittal of Bagri and Malik, criticizing the misogynistic and contradictory rationale of Justice Ian Josephson. Bolan further reveals how Khalistani groups operated with impunity, aided by political indifference and bureaucratic failures.
"Loss of Faith" is a vital, unflinching account that honours the victims and exposes the systemic failures that continue to haunt Canadian justice.
A MUST READ for anyone seeking the truth behind this national tragedy.
The book starts with the sombre depiction of events just before the bombing and the following rescue efforts. This is followed by a turn to the rise of the Khalistan movement in Canada, detailing how radicalized Khalistanis (not Sikhs) like Talwinder Parmar, Ajaib Bagri, and Ripudaman Malik infiltrated religious and community institutions. Bolan unflinchingly chronicles the financial networks supporting these extremists, including Malik’s substantial donations to Babbar Khalsa and the fraudulent schemes they employed to enrich themselves while advancing a violent agenda.
A particularly scathing chapter outlines the shocking negligence, incompetence and lack of coordination between CSIS and RCMP. Despite numerous warnings and visible signs of extremist activity, they failed to prevent the tragedy. The incompetence extended to botched surveillance, missed confessions, and ill-conceived deals—most notably allowing bomb-maker Inderjeet Reyat.
Bolan also sheds light on the intimidation and violence faced by those who challenged Khalistani extremists like the journalist Tara Singh Hayer, assassinated in 1998. Bolan herself endured death threats, surveillance, and public harassment. The author also dismantles the flawed 2005 acquittal of Bagri and Malik, criticizing the misogynistic and contradictory rationale of Justice Ian Josephson. Bolan further reveals how Khalistani groups operated with impunity, aided by political indifference and bureaucratic failures.
"Loss of Faith" is a vital, unflinching account that honours the victims and exposes the systemic failures that continue to haunt Canadian justice.
A MUST READ for anyone seeking the truth behind this national tragedy.
February 12, 2018
Depressing , but I'm glad I read it. You must come into this book with at least a little background on it's central event (wiki it). This book should be in read by anyone interested Recent BC history, Recent Canadian History, modern Canadian/Immigrant social studies, and the (lack of) Justice in our court systems. Very important to have a book like this, So people don't get fanatical and repeat the same types of mistakes. Kim Bolan is a good, brave, and just journalist. I look forward to her next book and further work in the papers. Thanks Ms Bolan!
March 14, 2025
A must read book to understand the narrative regarding Khalistani and Canadian government. It is painful to see how they got away with such a brutal crime. Now it is coming back to them as Karma.
February 19, 2012
Read for research. Admittedly, there was some skimming going on. I just wanted some background on what was happening to Sikhs in the 1980s, but became interested in how following the case impacted on journalist Kim Bolan's life and personal safety.
This was some pretty scary stuff.
This was some pretty scary stuff.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews