Canadian government grants

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The Canadian prosecutors who are dealing with the Air India bombings case have been granted a 30-day extension to the appeal period for the case.

The prosecutors will now have until 13 May to decide whether or not to appeal the acquittal of the two men who were tried in the case, The Associated Press reported. Justice Risa Levine of the British Columbia Court of Appeal reportedly viewed the extension as justified due to the amount of material and also the complex nature of the case.

The prosecutors are reviewing a 572-page ruling on the case to decide whether or not to launch an appeal.

The two bombings have been described as one of the deadliest acts of aviation sabotage, including the attack on flight 182 off the Irish coast, in which 329 people were killed. Air India flight 182 was on its way to Mumbai, India from Toronto, Canada via London when it exploded on 23 June 1985. The attacks also included a suitcase that had been transferred from a flight from Vancouver, which exploded at Tokyo's Narita Airport. Two baggage handlers were killed in the explosion.

Separately, the Canadian government has been recommended to carry out a public inquiry into the Air India bombings.

The Canadian parliament has reportedly passed a non-binding motion to recommend a public inquiry into the attacks. Families of the more than 200 Canadians who were among the 329 people killed on the Air India flight off the Irish coast have urged the authorities to launch a new investigation, reported Reuters.

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