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Drowning to Poisoning: How Zubeen’s death morphed into a murder mystery
Following the singer’s death, a Special Investigation Team was formed to probe all angles, from negligence to conspiracy.
The Assam Police have arrested seven individuals, including a cousin and a senior police officer, on murder charges within a month after Assam’s iconic singer Zubeen Garg died in mysterious circumstances in Singapore.
The death, which was initially termed as drowning by the Singapore General Hospital, has morphed into a murder mystery. One of the arrested individuals, Shekhar Jyoti Goswami, during police interrogation, accused the chief organiser of the North East India Festival (NEIF), Singapore, Shyamkanu Mahanta, and Zubeen’s secretary Siddharth Sharma of orchestrating the crime.
Zubeen died on September 19, before attending the NEIF. He was reportedly at a yacht party organised by a group of Assamese Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) in Singapore.
Several videos of the yacht party have since surfaced on social media. Goswami claimed that Zubeen went into the water twice — once wearing a life jacket and once without. According to his allegation, Siddharth Sharma allowed Zubeen to swim without a jacket in a comparatively dangerous part of the sea.
Goswami was arrested by the Crime Investigation Department (CID), Assam, on October 2, and the next day, his statement was recorded by Rosie Kalita, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of the Assam Chief Minister’s Special Vigilance Cell, under Section 175 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which allows police to investigate cognisable cases without prior approval from a magistrate.
Goswami claimed that before Zubeen’s death, a conspiracy had been planned to portray it as accidental. He alleged that Siddharth Sharma, who was staying with Zubeen in Room No. 3010 of Singapore’s Pan Pacific Hotel, was directly involved.
According to Goswami, Sharma forcibly took control of the yacht from its sailor, causing it to wobble dangerously in mid-sea, thereby endangering all passengers. Sharma also instructed Tanmoy Phukan (an NRI member of the Assam Association, Singapore) not to arrange drinks, claiming he alone would provide them.
“During the critical moments when Zubeen Garg was gasping for breath, almost drowning, Siddharth Sharma was heard shouting ‘Jabo de, jabo de’ (let him go, let him go),” the statement read. Goswami said Zubeen was an expert swimmer who had trained both him and Siddharth, and therefore, could not have drowned accidentally.
He further alleged that Sharma and Mahanta had poisoned Zubeen and deliberately chosen a foreign venue to conceal the conspiracy. He also said Sharma instructed others not to share the yacht videos immediately after the incident.
Goswami, who claimed to be an eyewitness, said that when Zubeen was frothing at the mouth and nose, Sharma dismissed it as acid reflux and assured others there was “nothing to worry about.” Instead of arranging immediate medical help, Goswami said, Sharma’s negligence “facilitated the early demise” of the singer.
However, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that Goswami might be trying to deflect blame by accusing others, and that the viscera sample test would make things clearer.
Zubeen’s body arrived in Assam via New Delhi on September 21. Before that, the Singapore government had conducted a post-mortem and handed the report to his wife, Garima Saikia Garg, who later gave it to the police to assist the investigation.
The chief minister said the report would not be made public as it could hamper the investigation, but anyone wishing to view it could do so at the CID office with prior approval.
A second post-mortem was conducted at Guwahati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), and the viscera samples were sent to New Delhi’s Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) to ascertain whether poison had been used.
Following the singer’s death, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to probe all angles, from negligence to conspiracy.
Munna Prasad Gupta, Special Director General of Police, CID (Assam Police), said on Saturday that the viscera report had been received from CFSL on Friday evening. Gupta, who is also the head of the SIT, said the report has been sent to GMCH for further analysis. “The report was received from the CFSL on Friday evening, and a special team at GMCH is analysing it. The inputs will be added to the final post-mortem report of the late singer,” he told reporters in Guwahati on Saturday afternoon.
During a Facebook Live session on Sunday evening, CM Sarma said that the viscera test report had added “some important inputs” to the investigation and that “justice will definitely be served.”
Earlier this week, he said the investigation would take time and that it was essential to file a strong chargesheet to ensure conviction.
“I understand the emotions of Zubeen’s fans, but we must be patient and allow the police to investigate. If we lose the case in court, that will be humiliating,” Sarma said.
After Zubeen’s death, nearly 60 police complaints were filed in Guwahati, Morigaon, and other parts of Assam, including one FIR by the singer’s wife. Following the CM’s directions, all FIRs were transferred to the CID.
The CID initially registered Case No. 18/2025 under Sections 61(2) (criminal conspiracy), 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), and 106(1) (causing death by a rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. Later, new charges were added under Section 103 (murder) and others, according to Gupta.
The CID arrested Shyamkanu Mahanta and Siddharth Sharma on October 1, followed by the arrests of singer Amritprabha Mahanta and musician Shekhar Jyoti Goswami the next day. Later, Zubeen’s cousin and senior police officer Sandipan Garg was also arrested.
Investigators have unearthed unusual financial transactions in the bank accounts of Zubeen’s two personal security officers (PSOs), leading to their arrest on October 10. The CID said it has recovered several deleted videos from Amritprabha Mahanta’s phone during the probe.
Gupta said that 11 Assam residents living in Singapore, who were present at the yacht party where Zubeen died, were summoned for questioning, but only four have appeared so far.
Meanwhile, Garrima Garg, who initially expressed faith in the investigation, on Sunday urged the people of Assam to use the hashtag #JusticeForZubeen to “create pressure on the system so that justice is served.”
Her social media posts have been widely shared with related hashtags triggering speculation. Sarma last week said that many people are trying to project Garima Garg against him in the upcoming Assembly election. On Monday, she posted on Facebook, “We need justice within 10 days.”
