Truck driver who caused Humboldt Broncos bus crash loses refugee bid

Humboldt driver loses bid

Photo: The Canadian Press

Truck driver Jaskirat Singh Sidhu walks into the Kerry Vickar Centre for his sentencing in Melfort, Sask., on March 22, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Kayle Neis

A lawyer for the truck driver who caused the deadly Humboldt Broncos bus crash says his client is one step closer to being deported to India.

Lawyer Michael Greene says the Immigration and Refugee Board has rejected a request for Jaskirat Singh Sidhu to stay in Canada as a refugee.

Greene says that decision means the Canada Border Services Agency is now under a legal obligation to remove Sidhu from Canada as soon as possible.

He says he's not sure when that might be but plans to ask for a deferral.

The board is still considering a previous application to restore Sidhu's permanent resident status.

That application argues Sidhu should be allowed to stay on humanitarian grounds because he has a child with complex medical issues.

Sidhu drove through a stop sign and into the path of a bus carrying the junior hockey team at a rural intersection near Tisdale, Sask., in April 2018.

Sixteen people died and 13 more were injured.