Rachna Khaira
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, November 24
Manmeet Bhullar (35), the Progressive Conservative Party MLA from Calgary-Greenway in Canada died in a tragic highway crash on the Queen Elizabeth II highway near Edmonton on Tuesday.
Though born and brought up in Calgary, Bhullar hailed from Raiya village in Amritsar district and was chosen as the youngest MLA from Alberta in 2008. He also served as Service Alberta Minister in 2011 and as Human Services Minister in 2013.
Baljinder Singh, his shattered father while talking over the phone to The Tribune from Calgary said he left the world doing what he loved more than anything – helping someone else. “Manmeet was on his way to Edmonton after delivering a speech at the University of Calgary when he got down from his car near just short of Edmonton to assist another accident victim on the roadside. The move proved fatal as a speeding truck coming from behind hit him hard,” said the aggrieved father.
Bhullar was known to be a compassionate person and felt strong concern for the Sikh community across the world. During his time as a legislator he worked to build relations between Alberta and India, helping negotiate a partnership between the province and the state of Punjab.
His death has sent the entire province in a state of mourning. Flags on provincial buildings were immediately lowered to half-mast until sunset due to Bhullar’s funeral.