GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister and Home Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made a stunning declaration in the Assembly on Tuesday, stating that the death of popular singer Zubeen Garg while swimming in the sea in Singapore on September 19 is a case of “plain and simple murder.”
The CM made the claim during a discussion under an adjournment motion on the singer’s death, which he personally requested the Speaker allow. He explained that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the circumstances of Garg’s death quickly determined the incident was not merely culpable homicide.
“After preliminary probe, the Assam Police was sure that it was not a case of culpable homicide, but it was a plain and simple murder,” Sarma stated. “That is why, section 103 of BNS [Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita] was added to the case within three days of his death.”
The SIT, operating under the CID of the state police, has so far arrested seven people, examined 252 witnesses, and seized 29 items in connection with the case. Sarma claimed that four to five people are being booked in the murder case, asserting that “one of the accused killed Garg and others helped him.”
The Chief Minister assured the house that the SIT will file a “watertight chargesheet” in December, adding that the motive behind the crime “will shock the people of the state.” Following the submission of the murder chargesheet, the probe will be expanded to include aspects of negligence and criminal breach of trust.
