Forensic report on Zubeen Garg’s death due October 10: CM Sarma

Guwahati, Oct 5: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has informed that the forensic report on the death of cultural icon Zubeen Garg will be furnished by October 10, adding that crucial details surrounding the incident in Singapore will become clearer once the viscera findings are available.

“On October 10, the viscera report will come. So, we will come to know on October 11 what actually happened,” Sarma told the press, responding to queries after visiting Garg’s residence in Kahilipara on Saturday evening.

The Chief Minister’s remarks came amid claims by Garg’s bandmate and one of the accused, Sekhar Jyoti Goswami, who reportedly told investigators that the singer was poisoned.

Clarifying that the statement did not originate from the police, Sarma said, “Now, why has he made that statement? Is it to safeguard himself or to blame someone else? These things will be revealed during the investigation.”

Garg’s viscera samples were sent to the Central Forensic Laboratory (CFL) for detailed examination on September 24.

The Chief Minister also appealed to the people of Assam to mount moral pressure on the Assamese community in Singapore, urging those who were present on the yacht with Garg to come forward and cooperate with the ongoing probe.

“Assam Police cannot go to Singapore, so it cannot take up the investigation there. They (Assamese community members) are in Singapore, and it is not under my jurisdiction. Unless they come here, nobody will be able to join the dots,” Sarma said.

The state CID, which is investigating the case, has issued notices to several members of the Assam Association, Singapore, to appear before it by October 6.

“Their parents stay in Assam. So, we, the people of Assam, must put pressure on the parents to ask their wards to come here for the probe,” Sarma added.

He cautioned that if the individuals failed to turn up by the deadline, “we will have to enter another cycle,” without elaborating.

So far, more than 60 FIRs have been lodged across Assam against organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and around 10 others, including Garg’s manager Siddharth Sharma and band members Goswami and Amrit Prabha Mahanta.

All four have been arrested and are currently under 14-day police remand.

Meanwhile, the Assam government has constituted a one-man judicial commission, headed by Justice Soumitra Saikia of the Gauhati High Court, to probe Garg’s death.

The Chief Minister said the sitting judge will also have the authority to oversee the ongoing CID investigation.

“It is a kind of body which will also take care of the proofs, and if they find that we are doing something wrong, the judicial commission will be able to be stricter on us. It will be a completely independent commission,” Sarma said, adding that this was the first time a sitting High Court judge had been entrusted with such a task in the state.

Garg, one of Assam’s most beloved cultural figures, died under mysterious circumstances in Singapore on September 19. He had gone there to attend the fourth edition of the North East India Festival, organised by Mahanta and his company.

The singer reportedly drowned while swimming during a yacht trip with members of the Assamese community based in Singapore.

PTI