Toronto: A 12-member jury has been selected by a judge in Canada for the trial of Inderjit Singh Reyat, accused of lying under oath during his testimony in the Kanishka bombing case.
Eight women and four men were chosen for jury duty for the two-week trial to be held in Vancouver from next Monday.
Reyat was charged in February 2006 with lying 27 times during his testimony as a Crown witness at the trial of two Air India case co-accused -- Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri -- in 2003.
Both Malik and Bagri were acquitted of charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy in the death of 329 people in the mid-air bombing of Air India`s Kanishka plane and a related explosion that killed two baggage handlers in Tokyo`s Narita airport on June 23, 1985.
Justice Mark McEwan, the trial judge, dismissed a potential juror from duty after the man said he could not participate because he was too angry.
The judge told the man he didn`t like his attitude after he told the court that he thought the case had been "solved" 15 years ago and had been "laid to rest".
Reyat was the only person convicted of involvement in the bombing after he pleaded guilty in 2003 to manslaughter in constructing the bomb used on Flight 182 and received a five-year sentence.
He is accused of telling the court under oath, with an intent to mislead, that he did not know or recall details of the alleged conspiracy beyond a few matters, Neil MacKenzie, a spokesman for the Crown counsel`s office, said.
The selection process for Reyat`s jury was rigorous and slow as several potential jurors put forward excuses to avoid the duty in the high-profile case, media reports said here.
One woman argued that her English was too poor while a sheet metal worker was dismissed because his brother was a retired police officer who had worked on the case.
One potential woman juror had a good reason for not having any part in deciding Inderjit Singh Reyat`s fate.
"I do feel biased," the woman said during the selection process in British Columbia Supreme Court. "When I went to university I had a student colleague who went on that flight and died," she said.
"It is very important that the case be decided on the evidence that is heard in the courtroom and not on any other basis," Judge McEwan told the jurors.
PTI
