Zubeen Garg case: CJM court remands five accused to 14-day judicial custody

Guwahati, Oct 15: The Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court has remanded the five accused arrested in connection with the death of cultural icon Zubeen Garg to 14 days of judicial custody following the expiry of their police remand.

The accused, Shyamkanu Mahanta, Siddhartha Sharma, Sandipan Garg, and the artiste's two personal security officers, Paresh Baishya and Nandeswar Bora, were produced before the local court on Wednesday.

Advocate Mintu Saikia, who was present during the hearing, said that none of the accused sought bail.

“They haven’t sought bail,” he said, adding that he too had filed an FIR at Latasil Police Station seeking coordination with the central government under the CID case (18/25), which has been recorded as an additional FIR against the accused.

According to reports, all five accused will be lodged in the newly constructed Baksa District Jail in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).

Another advocate Pradip Kowar confirmed to the press that the main accused, Mahanta, requested legal representation.

“Mahanta sought an advocate, and while the Bar Association allowed the Legal Aid Defence Counsel (LADC) to represent him, no member of the association will take up the case,” Kowar affirmed.

The next hearing might be held virtually or in person after 14 days, depending on the progress of the investigation, Konwar added.

Earlier, Mahanta and Sharma were arrested on October 1 and placed in 14 days of police custody, while DSP Garg was arrested a week later, on October 8, and remanded to seven days of SIT custody.

Garg’s PSOs, Baishya and Bora, were arrested on October 10 and remained in police custody for five days. All five were produced in court on Wednesday after their custody period ended.

Meanwhile, two more Assamese expatriates from Singapore, Sushmita Goswami and Pratim Bhuyan, appeared before the SIT on Wednesday and recorded their statements.

SIT chief M.P. Gupta said another expatriate, Debajit Hazariak, is expected to meet the investigation team later in the day.

“With today’s three, a total of 10 people from Singapore have come to us. One, Wazir Zaman, remains. He is a Singapore citizen but has expressed interest to come and record his statement. We have summoned him, and he too will appear soon,” Gupta told the press at the CID office in Ulubari.

The SDGP also dismissed reports circulating on social media purportedly showing DSP Garg’s post-mortem report, calling them “fake and misleading.”

“The post-mortem report doing the rounds on social media isn’t authentic, as it lacks doctors’ signatures. The original report in our possession is completely different,” Gupta clarified, urging the public not to share or believe unverified information that could hamper the investigation.

He said the police are monitoring social media activity and will conduct an inquiry into how the fake report went viral.

“I appeal to everyone not to spread or believe fake news,” Gupta added.