Ottawa, Sep 28 : Canadian Member of Parliament Chandra Arya, a vocal critic of the Justin Trudeau government for giving refuge to pro-Khalistani elements in the country, has slammed a new petition initiated by Liberal Party MP Sukh Dhaliwal relating to the Air India Kanishka bombings of June 23, 1985, that left 329 people dead and was the worst tragedy in the history of aviation terror before the 9/11 attacks.

The petition, which is available on the Canadian parliament portal, called upon the Government of Canada to order a fresh inquiry into the Air India episode to determine whether any foreign intelligence was involved in the crime.

It mentions that the Sikhs in Canada widely believe that the bombings was the "handiwork of a foreign intelligence to discredit their political activism and undermine their advocacy work for human rights in India".

Severely criticising the petition, Arya, who is of Indian origin, made a statement in the Parliament early Friday (India time), calling it as an attempt by the Khalistani extremists to promote new conspiracy theories.

"39 years back Air India Flight 182 was blown-up mid-air from a bomb planted by Canadian Khalistan extremists. It killed 329 people and is the largest mass killing in Canadian history. Even today, the ideology responsible for this terrorist attack is still alive among few people in Canada," Arya said in his statement.

"Two Canadian public inquiries found Khalistan extremists responsible for the bombing of Air India flight. Now there is a petition on parliament portal asking for a new enquiry promoting conspiracy theories promoted by Khalistan extremists," he added.

The Canadian MP then quoted Bal Gupta, whose wife Rama was killed in the attack, telling the Globe and Mail: "It's deeply frustrating. It opens up old wounds all over again. It's all garbage. It’s an attempt to gain publicity and support for terrorist activities".

In July, as another Hindu temple in Alberta's capital Edmonton was vandalised with hateful graffiti, Arya had emphasised the urgent need to rein in radicals before it was too late.