Zubeen Gargs manager, festival organiser arrested; remanded to 14-day police custody

PTC News Desk: Zubeen Garg's manager Siddharth Sharma and North East India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta were arrested in connection with the singer's death in Singapore last month. The duo was remanded to 14 days' police custody.

Mahanta was intercepted around midnight at Delhi airport shortly after returning from Singapore while Sharma detained at Gurugram toll plaza while travelling from Rajasthan to Delhi.

Both Sharma and Shyamkanu were flown together to Guwahati under police escort and taken straight to the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s residence, where they were produced before a magistrate. Police sought their custody to question them about Garg's death; their request was granted.

Interpol lookout notices were issued against the two individuals last week. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma stated that both Mahanta and Sharma are required to appear in Guwahati on October 6 to provide their statements before the investigation team.

To probe the death of Zubeen Garg, the Assam government set up a 10-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Special DGP M.P. Gupta. The SIT had earlier searched Sharma’s residence in Guwahati, seizing several documents. Sharma, who had been under surveillance in Rajasthan, went missing on September 25 after switching his SIM card. He was later tracked down and taken into custody in the early hours of Monday. Authorities also reportedly recovered Garg’s mobile phone from him.

Zubeen Garg (52), one of Assam’s most celebrated singers, passed away on September 19 after allegedly drowning at Lazarus Island in Singapore. He had travelled there to perform at the North East India Festival, which was cancelled following his death.

Garg was cremated with full state honours in Assam’s Kamrup district on September 23, with lakhs of admirers gathering to pay their respects.

While initial reports indicated that he died in a scuba diving accident, Garg’s wife, Garima Saikia, clarified that he suffered a seizure while swimming, denying claims of a diving mishap. Singaporean authorities listed drowning as the official cause of death in their autopsy. However, due to widespread protests and suspicions of foul play, a second post-mortem was carried out in Assam.

Meanwhile, drummer Shekhar Jyoti Goswami, who accompanied Garg during the sea outing at Lazarus Island, was arrested last week for questioning in connection with the case.