Inderjit Singh Reyat in July 2008.DARRYL DYCK
The Air India disaster has haunted Canada for 25 years, tearing at the heart of people who lost family members in a bomb explosion over the Atlantic Ocean and casting a dark shadow over the RCMP, CSIS and the judicial system.
Adding new outrage to the anger and hurt, a B.C. Supreme Court judge decided Wednesday to schedule the start of the perjury trial of Inderjit Singh Reyat for June 22. Although the connection was never mentioned in court, the date coincides with the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed 331 people.
"The families won't be very happy," Bal Gupta, who was a spokesperson for the victims' families for several years, said after he learned of the trial date. "They should have kept it away from the anniversary."
Lata Pada, who had a husband and two daughters on Flight 182, said the anniversary was important to honour the memory of those onboard. Her mind will be on matters other than Mr. Reyat, she said.
But she still felt the sting of events. "It is hard to believe it has been 25 years, and we are still at a point where a criminal case against Mr. Reyat is still playing out," she said.
Rattan Mall, the editor of a well-established Indo-Canadian newspaper, said bringing Mr. Reyat to trial before a jury around the time of the anniversary was patently unfair to him.
"There is going to be a whole lot of emotions whipped up around that time. You cannot expect [Mr.]Reyat to be viewed fairly," he said. "The perception of justice should be there, it is not just justice. … you got to be fair to everyone."
Mr. Reyat faces charges of perjury for allegedly testifying falsely in 2003 at a trial that acquitted B.C. residents Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri of charges of murder related to the Air India disaster.
The Crown alleges that Mr. Reyat told the court under oath, with the intent to mislead, that he did not know or recall details of the alleged conspiracy, beyond a few matters. The prosecution alleges he lied 27 times during his testimony.
Jury selection for the perjury trial was to begin next Monday. However, Mr. Justice Mark McEwan of the B.C. Supreme Court rescheduled the seven-day trial after Mr. Reyat's defence lawyer told the court that he was involved in another trial that was continuing longer than he had anticipated and he could not be in court for the perjury trial on Monday.
Mr. Reyat's trial has been delayed several times since it was first scheduled. Most recently, a jury was selected in March. But then the entire jury was dismissed after a report that a juror had made a remark that another member thought suggested a racial bias.
In a brief court session Wednesday, Judge McEwan said he was concerned about what people would think about the administration of justice as a result of the numerous delays in the trial. "I do not think it is good for the appearance of justice, in cases where there is high interest," he said.
Outside court, both defence lawyer Ian Donaldson and prosecutor Len Doust said the delays were unavoidable. They were ready to start the trial earlier this year, before the jury was dismissed, they said. "[The delays]are not as simple as saying people are not doing what they are supposed to do. There are good reasons," Mr. Doust said.
Mr. Donaldson said he had not thought about the coincidence of dates. No one asked for the trial to be postponed, he said.
Two bombs were placed on planes at Vancouver International Airport on June 22, 1985, by a group of Vancouver-based Sikh militants fighting for an independent homeland carved out of India. The bombs exploded hours later, on June 23, on opposite sides of the world. One of them went off at Tokyo's Narita airport, killing two baggage handlers. The second bomb exploded about an hour later aboard Air India Flight 182 over the Atlantic Ocean, killing 329 people. The RCMP and CSIS have been under a cloud for a failure to recognize the threats before the bombings and a failure to arrest those responsible.
A federal commission of inquiry into the investigation of the bombing is expected to release its report in June, less than two weeks before Mr. Reyat's trial. Memorial events are to be held in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver.