Singer Zubeen Garg’s death was ‘plain and simple murder’: Assam CM Sarma claims in Assembly

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday reiterated his claim that the death of singer Zubeen Garg in Singapore was not accidental but was a “plain and simple murder”, PTI reported.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader made the remarks while speaking in the Assembly during a discussion on an adjournment motion moved by the Opposition on the death of the singer.

“After preliminary probe, the Assam Police was sure that it was not a case of culpable homicide but it was a plain and simple murder,” the news agency quoted Sarma as saying. “That is why Section 103 of BNS [Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita] was added to the case within three days of his death.”

Section 103 outlines the punishment for murder.

Zubeen Garg, a renowned Assamese singer, died on September 19 during a yacht trip in Singapore, a day before he was scheduled to perform at the North East India Festival there.

The event had been organised by the Indian government and the Indian high commission in Singapore, with support from the Assam Association and the North East India Association in the country.

A death certificate issued by the Singaporean authorities on September 20 stated the cause of Zubeen Garg's death as drowning.

Seven persons have been arrested in the case.

This includes Shyamkanu Mahanta, who was the organiser of the North East India Festival, Zubeen Garg's manager Siddharatha Sharma and two musicians who were with the singer on the yacht – Shekharjyoti Goswami and Amritprava Mahanta.

Others who have been arrested include Zubeen Garg's cousin Deputy Superintendent of Police Sandipan Garg, who had travelled with him to Singapore, and two of the singer's personal security officers.

A special investigation team that has been looking into the circumstances of the singer's death had added murder charges to the case.

However, the Singapore Police Force on October 17 had said that it did not suspect foul play in the singer's death following preliminary investigations in the matter.

It had added that the probe may take up to three more months to complete, following which the findings would be submitted to the State Coroner, a judicial officer, who would determine whether the matter required a Coroner's Inquiry.

In the Assembly on Tuesday, several Opposition MLAs demanded that a detailed statement backing Sarma's repeated claim that Zubeen Garg's death was a “murder” be issued, The Indian Express reported.

The chief minister, during his address, claimed that one of the men accused in the case killed Zubeen Garg and the others helped him, PTI reported. “Four to five people are being booked in the murder case,” he further claimed.

Sarma added: “After the chargesheet in the murder case is submitted in December, the probe will be expanded to include negligence, criminal breach of trust and other aspects.”

The chief minister also said that the SIT will file a “watertight chargesheet”, adding that the motive behind the alleged crime “will shock the people of the state”.

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Source: Scroll
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