VANCOUVER, B.C. - A marathon reading of the Sikh holy book began Friday at a British Columbia temple, the first-ever memorial service at the temple in honour of the 331 people who died in the 1985 Air India bombings.

Members of the Dashmesh Darbar temple in Surrey, B.C., are to take turns over the next three days reading the text around-the-clock, in a ceremony called an akhand path.

But families of those who were killed in Canada's worst mass murder say they don't understand why the temple would hold the service while on the wall hangs a framed photo of the man police believe masterminded the deadly plot.

Lata Pada, whose husband and two daughters died when Air India Flight 182 went down, said Friday she doesn't understand the intent.

"There's a disconnect between the intent and the actual manifestation of that intent,'' she said from Mississauga, Ont.

Pada said she's grappling with why the temple would hold the service after so many years while a photo of Talwinder Singh Parmar is on display.

"It just feels very strange,'' she said.

Rattan Singh Kalsi, whose 21-year-old daughter Indira Kalsi was killed aboard Air India Flight 182, said he's glad the temple is holding a service for those who died in the tragedy.

"But they should remove Parmar's picture,'' Kalsi said from his home in London, Ont. "I strongly object to having that picture in the (temple).''

Inderjit Singh Bains, head the temple, said he sees no reason to remove Parmar's photo because the man wasn't convicted of any crime before he was killed in 1992 during a shootout with Indian police.

Bains said it's about time his congregation honoured the innocent victims of the two separate bombings that claimed so many lives.

Air India Flight 182 was downed by a suitcase bomb off the coast of Ireland on June 23, 1985, killing all 329 passengers and crews. An explosion the same day in luggage destined for another Air India flight at Tokyo's Narita Airport killed two baggage handlers.

"Three hundred and thirty-one people have died without reason,'' Bains said Thursday.

He said that as the new manager of the temple that opened its doors in 1997, he made the decision to finally have a memorial service for those who died in the terrorist bombings.

"My executive committee is new and these were innocent people who were killed,'' he said.

Pada said that as Monday's 23rd anniversary of the bombings nears, she feels the pain that all the families relive every year.

"It's like every other year,'' she said. "It never seems to be less painful.''

"The fact that we now have a memorial in Toronto, I think, is of great solace because we have our own place now in Canada to go to and to reflect upon the tragedy and honour our loved ones.''

Pada said the families are also eagerly awaiting the results of a public inquiry that spent 17 months assessing why the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service were unable to head off the bombings and why there have been no murder convictions in the case.

Parmar was named an unindicted co-conspirator eight years ago when two B.C. men were charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy and attempted murder in the bombings.

Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri were acquitted at trial in 2005.

The only person ever convicted in the bombings is Inderjit Singh Reyat, who has been behind bars for 20 years serving two manslaughter sentences.

Reyat remains in prison although his sentence has expired, facing trial for perjury in relation to his testimony at the trial of Malik and Bagri.

It's believed the plot against Air India was hatched by militant extremists in B.C.

Earlier this year, controversy also followed a Vaisakhi parade in Surrey when a parade float featured a photo of Parmar.