Zubeen Garg's death: SIT arrests Shekhar Jyoti Goswami, Amritprabha Mahanta
Guwahati: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the mysterious death of popular singer Zubeen Garg has arrested two more individuals, his bandmate Shekhar Jyoti Goswami and fellow performer Amritprava Mahanta, according to a news report on Thursday.
With these arrests, the total number of people taken into custody in the case has risen to four.
According to SIT officials, both Goswami and Mahanta had accompanied Garg to a yacht party during the North East India Festival in Singapore on September 19. Garg, 52, entered the water for a swim and was later found unresponsive, floating face down.
Investigators revealed that Goswami appeared in video footage swimming in close proximity to Garg, while Mahanta was seen filming the incident on her phone.
Police had been questioning both individuals over the last six days before proceeding with the arrests.
Earlier on Wednesday, the SIT had arrested Zubeen Garg’s manager, Siddharth Sharma, and North East India Festival coordinator, Shyamkanu Mahanta.
Investigators stated that they now intend to interrogate all four accused collectively to uncover more details surrounding the singer’s death.
On Thursday, the police formally charged Sharma and Shyamkanu Mahanta under multiple serious sections, including murder, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, criminal conspiracy, and causing death by negligence, in connection with Garg’s demise.
“We’ve added charges under Section 103 (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The investigation is active, and I cannot disclose further details at this point,” said Munna Prasad Gupta, Special Director General of Police (CID), who is overseeing the SIT investigation.
Meanwhile, Garg’s wife Garima Garg urged the public to let the legal process unfold. Speaking to a news agency, she expressed confidence in the justice system
“The authorities are conducting the investigation their way, and we should avoid speculation for now. I’m not fully informed, but I believe the truth will come out. If anyone is responsible, they will be punished,” she said.
The SIT has also initiated steps to collect evidence from Singapore, where the incident occurred. Gupta confirmed that the team is waiting for official clearance to travel.
“Our team is prepared to visit Singapore. We’ve submitted the necessary request through the appropriate diplomatic channels. It will take some time,” he told a news agency.
The investigation continues to unfold, with authorities focusing on gathering international evidence and piecing together what really happened during the fatal yacht party.