Opinion: Deporting Jaskirat Singh Sidhu lessens us as a country

It’s difficult to imagine anyone in this country who has carried as much guilt with them over the past six years as Jaskirat Singh Sidhu.

The name might not immediately resonate with you, but the tragedy he’s linked to certainly will: the Humboldt Broncos bus crash. Mr. Sidhu was the truck driver who blew through a stop sign and caused the collision that killed 16 members of the Saskatchewan junior hockey team.

Among those dead were 10 players who ranged in age from 16 to 21. Other victims included members of the team’s coaching and training staff, a play-by-play announcer and the Broncos’ bus driver. Thirteen others were injured.

Even six years removed from that fateful day, it’s impossible to forget the grief it caused not just in Saskatchewan, but across the country. For several days it felt like all of Canada was in mourning. We cried for Humboldt. We cried for the families that were plunged into unimaginable grief that day.

There were few tears shed for Mr. Sidhu. Many wanted to see him locked away for life, or better still, deported to India.

Eventually, however, time tempered those feelings, at least for some – including for families who lost someone in the crash. Mr. Sidhu never tried to deny culpability, never tried to seek a plea deal. He pled guilty to all 29 counts of dangerous driving and was sentenced to eight years in prison. He very well could have mounted a case against the trucking company for whom he worked, citing insufficient training. He didn’t. He spared the victims’ families a long, drawn-out court hearing.

It was impossible to not feel his shame, his guilt and his remorse. Eventually, it was also hard not to see, on some level, just what a horrible, horrible accident it was. It was clear there was no intent on Mr. Sidhu’s part. There was evidence he was momentarily distracted by a flapping tarp improperly tied down just as he approached the intersection where the accident occurred. With only a month on the job, and with little training, it wasn’t an unreasonable view that Mr. Sidhu should not have been behind the wheel of a tractor-trailer lugging 22 tonnes of peat moss.

We mention all this because Mr. Sidhu has been thrust back into the news. Released on parole last year, he was recently ordered to be deported by the Immigration and Refugee Board. There was no avenue for the board to allow him to stay on compassionate grounds. Because of the seriousness of his offence, the decision was a formality.

Now, his Calgary MP, Liberal George Chahal, is trying to drum up support to block the deportation. He believes this country needs to demonstrate some empathy for Mr. Sidhu, saying he’s paid a heavy price for his actions. A price he will pay for the rest of his life.

I agree.

This is a moment for Canada to show what it is made of, to demonstrate its true values. Some families of those killed in the accident have found it in their hearts to forgive Mr. Sidhu. Others haven’t and likely never will.

Mr. Sidhu is married and has a young child who has serious heart and lung problems. Consequently, the child and mother would likely stay in Canada, if and when Mr. Sidhu is sent back to India. There is something wrong with that.

Are we a better country if Mr. Sidhu is sent home? Would it make us all feel better? Would it heal the wounds of the families affected by the accident for which he’s claimed responsibility? No.

Mr. Sidhu’s lawyer, Michael Greene, plans to file an application to have his client’s permanent resident status returned on humanitarian grounds. It is clear Mr. Sidhu is neither a security risk nor a danger to the public.

In considering Mr. Sidhu’s plight it’s worth recalling how one of the families affected by the crash dealt with their anger. Scott and Laurie Thomas lost their 18-year-old son Evan that April day. Initially, they held on to the bitterness that gripped most of the Humboldt families. But as they thought more about it, they were forced to confront an uncomfortable truth: Evan would have forgiven Mr. Sidhu.

According to a 2021 story in Maclean’s, they wrote Mr. Sidhu a letter that offered him their forgiveness. They included a pendant Evan’s father had worn. On one side was Evan’s hockey number, 17; on the other, the logo of his team, the Humboldt Broncos. They wanted Mr. Sidhu to have it.

When they finally came face to face with the person responsible for their son’s death, the truck driver fell to one knee and cried. He could not believe their kindness.