Murray Wood: Reconciling sorrow and anger in the death of a Roughrider
Murray Wood says the death of Roughrider Jaden Dalke on the weekend, and another man who was in a vehicle struck by Dalk...
An online fundraiser for Bhishma Rajyaguru, who died in a crash on Highway 11 near Lumsden on Saturday night, has exceeded its goal.
The crash also killed Saskatchewan Roughriders linebacker Jayden Dalke. Both died at the scene.
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Tonish Patel says funds raised — more than $77,000 on Tuesday afternoon — for his friend are more than enough to cover the cost of repatriating the body to India.
Patel says the money will also help Rajyaguru’s parents in India as they navigate the loss of their son.
Rajyaguru, 22, came to Canada from the Indian state of Gujarat as an international student in 2022 and had been living in Regina.
Patel said he remembers his friend as a talented musician and a polite, hard-working man who enjoyed watching cricket.
He added that Rajyaguru’s body can’t be transported to India until the autopsies and tests are complete, and he didn’t know when that might be.
RCMP have said both men were driving SUVs and Dalke was on the wrong side of the divided highway before the crash. Alcohol and cannabis were later found in the football player’s vehicle.
Mounties also said that a half-hour before the crash, a gas station in Lumsden reported that Dalke’s SUV left with unpaid fuel.
There were no passengers in the vehicles. Autopsies and toxicology tests are being done.
After Rajyaguru was named, there was heavy criticism on social media about the many online tributes that only mentioned Dalke.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe’s tribute to Dalke on Facebook garnered dozens of replies criticizing him for not mentioning the Regina man.
On Tuesday, Moe made a post mentioning Rajyaguru.
Andrew Scheer, Conservative MP for Regina—Qu’Appelle, also received a number of negative reactions to his X post mentioning Dalke.
This is just heartbreaking.
— Andrew Scheer (@AndrewScheer) July 19, 2026
I know the whole province and
CFL fans across the country are mourning with Jayden's family and the entire Roughriders' organization.
As team captain he was a leader on and off the field and was a true example of sportsmanship and community spirit.… https://t.co/DLjzFbrdRX
Sheer also posted a tribute to Rajyaguru a day later.
Now that more details have been released, we know that there was another fatality in the recent crash between Lumsden and Regina.
— Andrew Scheer (@AndrewScheer) July 21, 2026
I have heard from numerous members of the Gujarati community who are reeling from this devastating loss.
My sincere condolences to friends and… pic.twitter.com/mwqtCGkDcv
Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski also posted a tribute to Rajyaguru after criticism on an earlier Facebook post about Dalke.
Saskatchewan Roughriders posted a tribute to Dalke but had not mentioned Rajyaguru on social media feeds at the time of publication.
The organization posted on X about Rajyaguru after this story was published.
We are profoundly saddened by the loss of 22-year-old Regina resident Bhishma Rajyaguru on Saturday.
— Saskatchewan Roughriders (@sskroughriders) July 22, 2026
In speaking with one of Bhishma's loved ones, he shared with us that he was a caring friend, a devoted son, a supportive brother, and someone who was always there for the people… pic.twitter.com/FirkY1Yvjc
