Zubeen Garg death probe: Fast track court rejects bail plea of key accused

Guwahati, April 30 (SocialNews.XYZ) A fast track court on Thursday rejected the bail plea of Shyamkanu Mahanta, the festival organiser and a key accused in the death probe of Assam's cultural icon Zubeen Garg, dealing a setback to the accused in the ongoing case.

With the latest order, Mahanta will continue to remain in judicial custody until further directions from the court.

During the hearing, the counsel representing Mahanta sought bail on various grounds, while the prosecution opposed the plea.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the court declined to grant relief at this stage.

Further legal proceedings in the matter are expected to continue in the coming days.

The case pertains to the death of Zubeen Garg, who died on September 19 last year while swimming near Lazarus Island in Singapore.

The incident occurred just a day before the singer was scheduled to perform at an event organised under the NEIF banner.

Following the incident, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Assam Police’s CID conducted an extensive probe and filed a chargesheet in December.

The chargesheet named seven accused individuals, including Mahanta. Of them, four have been booked on charges of murder, intensifying the gravity of the case.

Earlier, Assam Chief Minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, had termed the case a “plain and simple murder” during a discussion in the state Assembly, underlining the government’s stance on the matter.

Meanwhile, a parallel investigation carried out by Singapore Police reached a different conclusion, stating that there was no evidence of foul play in Garg’s death.

Despite this, authorities in Assam have maintained that the findings of the foreign probe will not influence the ongoing investigation and trial in the state.

The case continues to draw widespread public and political attention, with the upcoming bail hearing expected to be a crucial stage in the legal proceedings.

Source: IANS