In a development that adds yet another layer of frustration to Canada’s worst act of terrorism, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has finally identified the mysterious “Mr X” — a man who helped test the bomb that brought down Air India Flight 182 in 1985 — but says it cannot reveal his name due to privacy laws.
RCMP Assistant Commissioner David Teboul told Postmedia about this breakthrough while on way to attending a memorial in Ahakista, Ireland, marking the 40th anniversary of the bombing that killed all 329 people on board.
Despite the suspect’s recent death, Teboul said the name remains protected under Canada’s privacy legislation.
“This is the largest act of terrorism in the history of Canada, so we — the RCMP — have an obligation to memorialize it and pay respect every year.”
It is reported that Mr X had travelled with Khalistani extremist leader Talwinder Singh Parmar and bomb-maker Inderjit Singh Reyat to Duncan, British Columbia, on 4 June 1985 to test an explosive device in a wooded area.
Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) agents, who were surveilling the group, heard the blast but reportedly mistook it for a gunshot.
Two weeks later, a bomb concealed in luggage exploded mid-air aboard Air India Flight 182, also known as the Kanishka, off the Irish coast. A second bomb detonated at Narita Airport in Japan, killing two baggage handlers. In total, 331 lives were lost.
Although Reyat was eventually convicted of manslaughter and perjury, and admitted to building the devices, no one else has been held accountable. Parmar was never charged and was killed by police in India in 1992. Mr X, now identified, dies without facing justice.
“This is the disdain I have for how this investigation has unfolded over the last 40 years,” said Kash Heed, former West Vancouver police chief and British Columbia Solicitor General.
“Would the treatment have been the same if the victims had been white?”
The Air India bombing was the result of a terror plot by members of Babbar Khalsa, a Khalistani separatist group. A public inquiry led by retired Supreme Court Justice John Major in 2010 called the bombing “a cascading series of errors” by Canadian authorities.
23 June 2025 marks both the 40th anniversary of the Air India bombing and the 20th anniversary of Canada’s National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism. Memorial services are being held across Canada and abroad to honour the 331 lives lost in the 1985 tragedy. The RCMP is also calling on the public to reflect privately or attend events in Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa.
“It was really a Canadian tragedy, first and foremost. But it was also an Irish tragedy. A lot of Irish folks have been very invested in it through the last 40 years,” Teboul said.
“It’s part of their history. So there’s a lot of emotions there.”
Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree is leading the Canadian delegation at the memorial, joined by Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Indian Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.
As efforts continue to preserve wreckage from the downed Boeing 747 for a future memorial in Canada, many victims’ families remain haunted by the flawed investigation and ongoing absence of justice.
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