Kanishka victims not after money, says campaigner

Toronto: As the Canadian government discusses ex-gratia compensation with the families of the Air India Kanishka bombing victims, the man who started this fight for justice says that the victims are not after money.
'What is more important is the security (of passengers) in the future. That was the purpose of our fight to have the government to investigate why this thing happened and then take corrective steps,' Bal Gupta, who formed the Air India Victims Families' Association after losing his wife in the bombing, told IANS.
His wife was among 329 passengers who perished near the Irish coast June 23, 1985, when the Air India Kanishka Flight 182 from Toronto to Delhi was brought down a bomb planted by pro-Khalistan extremists to avenge the Indian Army action at Amritsar's Golden Temple to flush out militants.
In his report submitted to the Canadian government in June, former Canadian chief justice John Major, who headed a public inquiry commission into the Kanishka bombing, has recommended ex-gratia payment for the victim families alongside major steps to overhaul security systems to avert such tragedies in the future.
Though all victim families got compensation - some even up to one million dollars - in the early 1990s, the commission has recommended an ex-gratia payment for these families as a token gesture.
But this has led to headaches for the government as some people are making huge amounts of compensation, though initially it was suggested to give $25,000 to each family.
14/12/10 Sify.com

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Categories: Air India - International Dec 2010, Air India Dec 2010, Foreign Dec 2010