Calgary Liberal MP George Chahal Try to enlist the support of colleagues to prevent the eviction Jaskirat Singh Sidhu,Responsible Humboldt Broncos A bus crashed, killing 16 people and injuring 13.
Chahal emailed Liberal caucus colleagues last week saying he would publicly support Sidhu staying in Canada, The Hill Times first reported.
“It was a tragic accident and he admitted his guilt and served his sentence,” Chahal said. “Mr Sidhu is my constituent and I had the opportunity to meet him, his wife and children over the past few days and he asked for my forgiveness.”
A spokesperson for Immigration Minister Mark Miller's office told Global News they do not comment on specific cases due to privacy laws. Chahal said he has not spoken to Miller about the matter beyond the email he sent to the Liberal caucus.
Sidhu received a deportation order at a hearing at the Immigration and Refugee Board in Calgary on May 24.
Although Sidhu's lawyers argued that Sidhu should not be deported on compassionate and humanitarian grounds, Board of Directors These factors cannot be taken into account And the decision must be made based on “whether the Minister has alleges sufficient factual basis to support the allegation that you are inadmissible for a serious criminal offence”.
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This is because, although Sidhu took full responsibility for his actions, the law stated that he was not allowed to enter Canada because he was not a Canadian citizen and had committed a serious crime.
At the time, Sidhu's attorney, Michael Greene, said he was not surprised by the commission's decision because that's how the law is written, calling it a “foregone conclusion.”
Green said Sidhu had become a father since moving here and his child had serious health issues so would not be safe in India.
“My concern is that his deportation will also separate Mr. Sidhu from his family, his wife is a Canadian citizen and his son has serious health issues, a heart condition, and needs care. So I hope Canadians will also forgive him and allow him to be reunited with his family,” Chahal said.
The Calgary MP plans to travel across the country to drum up support for Sidhu, and his legal team is preparing an application to restore Sidhu's permanent residency.
After the deportation board hearing, Green told reporters he planned to submit an application to the government to restore Sidhu's permanent resident status on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.
Global News has reached out to Green for comment on Chahal’s efforts to stop the deportation.
Sidhu moved to Canada in 2014, four years before the Humboldt Broncos bus crash, and moved to Calgary. He was released on parole last year. On April 6, 2018, Sidhu was driving a semi-truck through a rural intersection with a stop sign near Tisdale, Saskatchewan, when he collided with a bus carrying the Broncos. They were traveling to Nipawin, Saskatchewan, for the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League playoffs.
The accident killed 16 people, including 11 players between the ages of 16 and 21. Other victims included Broncos coaches and training staff, the on-site commentator and the bus driver.
Thirteen passengers survived but were seriously injured, including one, Ryan Straschnitzki, who was paralyzed from the chest down.
Chahal said he has not spoken to any Broncos fan families about his efforts to stop Sidhu’s deportation, but would if anyone was interested.
— With files from Caley Gibson of Global News.
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