HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, Oct 8: In a significant development in the investigation into the mysterious death of renowned Assamese singer Zubeen Garg, his cousin and Assam Police officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sandipan Garg, was arrested and remanded to seven days’ police custody by the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Court in Kamrup Metropolitan district on Wednesday.
The arrest marks the fifth in the high-profile case, which has deeply impacted Assam’s cultural and artistic fraternity.
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Sandipan Garg, who was present with Zubeen Garg on a yacht in Singapore on September 19, the day the singer tragically drowned while swimming, was interrogated by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) multiple times over the past week before being taken into custody.
The SIT, constituted under the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Assam Police on the directive of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, is probing the case to conduct a transparent and time-bound investigation into the circumstances of the singer’s death.
CID Special DGP M. P. Gupta, heading the SIT, said that while the police had sought 14 days’ custody, the court allowed seven days.
He added that Singapore-based Assamese national Rup Kamal Kalita appeared before the SIT for the second consecutive day for questioning, and that fresh summons would be issued to other NRI individuals who were part of the yacht gathering, subject to the legal framework under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) between India and Singapore.
Gupta declined to provide further details as the investigation is ongoing.
Sandipan Garg, an Assam Police Services officer of the 2022 batch, reportedly posted on social media earlier this week asserting that he had “fully cooperated” with the investigation and responded to every query during the “marathon interrogation session.”
A senior officer told PTI on condition of anonymity that Sandipan is likely to be placed under suspension while the department verifies whether he had obtained proper government permission for his travel to Singapore, as public servants are required to do under service rules.
Earlier arrests in the case include Zubeen Garg’s manager Siddharth Sharma and North East India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta, both apprehended on October 1 upon returning from Singapore and booked on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Subsequently, two of Zubeen Garg’s close bandmates, Shekhar Jyoti Goswami and Amritprabha Mahanta, were also taken into custody and remanded to 14 days of police custody.
More than 60 FIRs have been lodged across the state against Mahanta, Sharma, and ten others, including the two band members.
Sandipan Garg, who was serving as co-district in-charge superintendent of Boko-Chhaygaon in Kamrup district, comes from a family with public service background, his father being an officer in a PSU fertiliser company in Namrup, Dibrugarh district.
The SIT continues to question all involved and gather evidence as it works to unravel the events leading to the untimely demise of one of Assam’s most cherished cultural icons. (With inputs from PTI)
