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A federal judge has granted a last-minute reprieve for the truck driver who caused the deadly Humboldt Broncos bus crash, temporarily preventing his imminent deportation to India.
Lawyers for Jaskirat Singh Sidhu appeared in Federal Court on Friday, hoping to avoid Sidhu’s deportation, which was scheduled for Monday morning.
Sidhu, a rookie Calgary trucker, drove through a stop sign and into the path of the bus carrying the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League team at a rural intersection near Tisdale, Sask., in April 2018.
Sixteen people died, and 13 more were injured, sparking a nationwide outpouring of grief, condolences and tributes.
Sidhu entered guilty pleas to dangerous driving offences and was sentenced to eight years in prison.
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A criminal conviction that carries a sentence of more than six months makes a permanent resident ineligible to remain in the country.
Sidhu was granted full parole in 2023.
His lawyer, Michael Greene, had asked Canada Border Services Agency to defer his deportation by 17 months until an application to restore his client’s permanent resident status on humanitarian and compassionate grounds was considered.
“They said no. We challenged that in federal court on the grounds that it was unreasonable,” Greene said in an interview Friday evening.
“The court said we’re going to issue a stay until the Federal Court makes a decision on our challenge of the application to defer removal. We think they made a bad decision, and the court has said we’re going to wait for the outcome of that decision.”
“The judge agreed with our argument, which is a very rare decision, and we now have a break of several months,” he said.
Greene said the delay could be anywhere between one and eight months.
Sidhu has two children, and one has complex medical issues. He has health issues of his own as well, said Greene, so this decision is welcome.
“In the many years this has been going on, this is the first time there has ever been a positive decision in his favour.”
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