Singapore/New Delhi: Popular Indian musician Zubeen Garg died after swimming in the waters off St John’s Island in Singapore, and not while scuba diving, as was initially reported. Police in Singapore have provided the Indian High Commission with his autopsy report.
In response to queries by The Straits Times on Oct 1, a spokesman for the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said they have extended a copy of the autopsy report, along with its preliminary findings on Zubeen Garg’s death, to the High Commission of India, upon its request.
The SPF had earlier ruled out foul play.
The 52-year-old Zubeen was with more than a dozen people on an unnamed yacht on September 19 when tragedy struck. A video posted on X on Sept 20 showed him jumping into the water for a swim while wearing a life vest.
According to the person who posted the video, which has since garnered over 600,000 views, Zubeen took off his life jacket minutes later and jumped into the water again. The singer, who was born in Assam, was pulled out of the water unconscious.
He was rushed to Singapore General Hospital but died that same day, the Straits Times reported.
According to media reports, Zubeen Garg’s death certificate, issued by a Singapore hospital, lists the cause of death as drowning.
However, the Assam government has ordered a second post-mortem in India.
The singer was in Singapore to attend the North-East Festival – an event showcasing products and cultural heritage of India’s north-eastern region – and was scheduled to perform on Sept 20.
The event was organised by the local Assamese community.
The Indian government called for a probe and requested the help of Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs on September 29.
Two Assam police officers also travelled to Singapore to seek assistance from the authorities.
The Assam government has set up a 10-member special investigation team (SIT) to probe the circumstances surrounding Garg’s death.
Notices were sent to several people who had either travelled with him or were part of the event. These included festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta, Garg’s manager Siddhartha Sharma, members of the Singapore Assam Association and close associates of the singer.
Sharma was picked up from an apartment in Delhi, while Mahanta was detained at the Indira Gandhi International Airport as he returned from Singapore. Both men were later flown to Guwahati, in Assam, in the early hours of Oct 1 for questioning.
SPF said members of the public in Singapore are advised not to share any videos or images related to Garg’s death.
Ms Ng Kai Ling, associate director at LIMN Law Corporation, said that there is no statutory definition for the term “foul play”, but SPF’s initial statement could be understood to mean that they do not suspect that Garg was murdered or died as a result of some criminal violence.
Ms Ng added that a coroner’s inquiry could ascertain the identity of the deceased and how, when and where the death took place. She said: “In the case of Zubeen Garg, a coroner’s inquiry could possibly shed light on the sequence of events leading up to his drowning.”
Meanwhile, in Guwahati, both Siddharth Sharma and Shyamkanu Mahanta, the two accused named in the FIRs filed over the death of Zubeen Garg, were produced before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Wednesday morning.
As the court was closed due to the puja holiday, the two were taken to the residence of the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Guwahati and produced.
The SIT team has already been interrogating others named in the FIRs over death of the iconic singer. Several FIRs have been lodged in different police stations in Assam over the death of Zubeen by his fans, demanding a thorough inquiry into the circumstances leading to Zubeen's death.
Last Saturday, family members of Garg had also lodged an FIR demanding a thorough probe into the circumstances leading to his death.
It may be mentioned here that the Assam Government had already requested the central government for invocation of Mutual Legal Assistance treaty with Singapore, which is expected to help the investigation process.
Following the request, the Ministry of Home Affairs has already sent a letter to the Singapore authorities seeking cooperation regarding the investigation into Zubeen's death.
Zubeen Garg was cremated with full state honors in Assam on September 23, with hundreds of thousands of mourners attending his final farewell.
