Explained: The uproar in Assam over singer Zubeen Garg’s death

What is known about Zubeen Garg’s death?

Garg passed away at the age of 52 in Singapore. He was visiting the country as a cultural brand ambassador for the North East India Festival, scheduled for September 20 and 21, where he was also supposed to perform.

On September 19, he was reportedly taken for a yacht outing by members of the Assam Association Singapore and lost consciousness while swimming. He was declared dead when he was taken to Singapore General Hospital. The death certificates issued by Singapore authorities stated the cause of death as “drowning.”

There was an immediate outcry in Assam, with the collective shock over the death of one of its biggest cultural icons. Garg had a three-decade-long career as a singer, songwriter, actor, and even filmmaker, also performing in multiple Indian languages.

By that very evening, complaints began to be filed at several police stations in the state, naming North East India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and Garg’s manager Siddharth Sharma, accusing them of causing the death through negligence and mismanagement.

These allegations have also been drawn from Garg’s publicly known health issues. In 2022, he sustained a head injury when he fell while experiencing a seizure. His wife, Garima Saikia Garg, has stated that he was on medication for it and experienced his last seizure in August last year. Another view among the public is that Garg was being exploited for monetary gain by the accused.

After dozens of such complaints were filed, the Assam CID registered a consolidated case against Mahanta, Sharma and others under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide not amounting to murder and death by negligence. The state government has also constituted a nine-member Special Investigation Team for the case, which is being led by CID Special DGP M.P. Gupta.

Who is under scrutiny?

The two main accused, who have been at the receiving end of public outrage, are Mahanta and Sharma. Mahanta is listed as the director of multiple companies, including the Singapore event’s organiser, Trend MMS. He has organised a slew of cultural festivals through the company, beginning with the North East Festival that was first held in New Delhi.

Its international iterations have been held in Thailand’s Bangkok in 2019 and 2022, and in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City in 2023. The 2025 edition was to be held in Singapore. Trend MMS organised these events in association with the Indian embassies in the respective countries. It also organises an annual Rongali festival in Guwahati, which is supported by the Assam government.

Mahanta hails from an influential family. One of his elder brothers is former Assam DGP Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta, who is currently Assam’s Chief Information Commissioner. Another elder brother of his is Gauhati University Vice-Chancellor Nani Gopal Mahanta. Before being appointed the VC last year, he was the Assam government’s education advisor, and he is currently also the Chairman of the Adarsha Vidyalaya Sangathan, a body under the Assam Directorate of Education.

These connections have been highlighted by the opposition Congress, and the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led BJP government has turned its guns on Mahanta as well. The public pressure on the government to act in response to Garg’s death, which has become a highly emotive issue in the state, is evidenced by Sarma declaring that people should not vote for the BJP in the 2026 Assam legislative elections if it is not able to “deliver justice to Zubeen.”

Sarma also addressed both Mahanta and Sharma through a Facebook live session, telling them to present themselves before the CID on October 6 and not “test the patience of the people of Assam.”

The government has stated that it has now prohibited Mahanta and organisations affiliated with him from holding any events in the state and blacklisted him from financial grants, advertisements, or sponsorships.

On Monday, Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi questioned why they have not been located by police yet and have been given time till October 6, accusing Sarma of “shielding” them by pointing to Mahanta having “close links with BJP ministers in Delhi and Dispur.”

The other person under scrutiny is Sharma, who has been Garg’s manager since 2014. He is also a co-designated partner with Garg in Zubeen Garg Music LLP, which was registered in 2021.

What is the scope of the investigation?

In a public statement on Monday, Garima Saikia Garg alleged that Garg had become a victim of negligence, questioning the lack of medical assistance and security on Mahanta’s part and of negligence on Sharma’s part.

Sharma was part of the group that was with Garg at the time of the incident, and she alleged that he was aware that Garg was not supposed to swim because of his medical history. She also questioned why he was not lifted from the water when he appeared to be visibly tired in videos that have surfaced, showing him before the outing.

While investigating the case for culpable homicide, the SIT has searched both the accused persons’ residences in Guwahati. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has also written to the Singapore government, seeking assistance in the probe from their authorities based on a Mutual Legal Assistance agreement between the governments of India and Singapore.

In the meantime, the CID has opened another line of action against Mahanta by registering an additional case against him, based on materials found in his residence during the raids, for misappropriation of government funds, money laundering, cheating and forgery.