Northeast India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta on Thursday said his name has been dragged in connection with singer Zubeen Garg’s death for ‘TRP purposes’ in a statement issued hours after Assam Police SIT raided his Guwahati residence.
A day before his demise, Zubeen was supposed to perform at the Northeast India Festival. Following his cremation and a four-day mourning period, the investigation of his death began on Tuesday with 55 FIRs carrying four names, and two arrests across Assam.
In a Facebook video shared on Thursday, Mahanta claimed that the allegations levelled against him are without evidence. He mentioned that he learnt about Zubeen’s passing around 3.30pm on September 19. Since he had invited the singer to the event as its brand ambassador, he does not see it as his fault.
Mahanta added that Zubeen was staying at the five-star Pan Pacific Hotel in Singapore and had planned to dedicate his performance to Bhupen Hazarika.
SIT raided the residences of NEIF organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and his manager, Siddhartha Sharma, on Thursday. According to reports, only his two house helps were present at the time of the raid.
Zubeen passed away on Friday in Singapore following an accident. According to Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, he was swimming in the sea without a life jacket. He was rescued by Singapore police from the sea and rushed to a nearby hospital. However, he could not be saved despite being placed under intensive medical care. He was 53.
Besides Mahanta and the singer’s manager Sidharth Sharma, FIRs were lodged against drummer Shekhar Jyoti Goswami and businessman Sanjive Naraine.