Families of Air India bombing victims find peace and presence at Irish memorial
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A larger than usual crowd is expected Monday, June 23 to mark the 40th anniversary of the bombing. Dozens of relatives have travelled from Canada. Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree will be here, as will Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin and representatives of the Indian government. Several RCMP officers from B.C. are also here to participate.
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The Mounties and several relatives gathered informally at the memorial Saturday as rain threatened overhead.
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Saroj Gaur hugged Padmini, who she calls 'auntie' because of the support Gaur was offered by the Turlapatis when her father Om Prakash Sharma died in the bombing.
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Sharma had immigrated from India to work as a high school teacher in Newfoundland and support his large family.
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Gaur, who now lives in Toronto, said her dad wanted her to travel with him to India for the summer break. But she was 23, had just finished her studies and wanted to look for work. She was job-hunting in Toronto when she got the news about the flight from a family friend.
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'We were living in Canada, paying our taxes. My father was teaching Canadian children, and it hurts when he wasn't recognized. You know that it's a Canadian tragedy,' Gaur said with tears in her eyes.
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She also finds comfort here, near to her father, whose body wasn't recovered.
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'This is my third trip. When we were driving down here, I felt something very touching. I felt like I'm coming to my own place,' she said. 'I was feeling so joyous. I felt like I belong here.'
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She is also grateful to the Irish for their support over four decades.
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'The Irish people made this beautiful monument here. It doesn't matter how many times you come here, how many times you've seen it, you still want to come back. This is the place where they lost their life and you can't forget it.'
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Sanjay Lazar, who lives in Pune, India, was just 17 when he lost his father Sampath, stepmother Sylvia and toddler sister Sandeeta to the bomb planted by B.C. terrorists.
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It is here that Lazar feels closest to his family.
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For many years after he was orphaned, Lazar ran away from his pain. Four years ago, that all changed here at the memorial when he felt for the first time that his family was sending him a message.
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