Zubeen Garg death case: Festival organiser moves SC, alleges ‘media witch-hunt’

New Delhi, Oct 3 (IANS) North East India Festival (NEIF) chief organiser Shyam Kanu Mahanta has filed a petition before the Supreme Court alleging that he has been made a “scapegoat to subside the current public outrage created due to media reporting” in connection with the death of Assam’s iconic singer Zubeen Garg in Singapore.

In his writ petition, the 53-year-old festival organiser has claimed that he is the victim of “a well calculated witch-hunt involving irresponsible media reporting, both print and electronic, which seek to create a false narrative with regard to the alleged involvement of the petitioner in the sad and unfortunate demise of his very dear personal friend, Mr. Zubeen Garg”.

The plea stated that Mahanta, who was organising the NEIF in Singapore from September 19–21, 2025, “was not even present at the place of occurrence of the unfortunate demise of the late singer”.

The petitioner claimed that on the morning of September 19, he was occupied at the Shangri-La Hotel venue “overseeing the arrangements and receiving dignitaries as per protocol,” including Chief Ministers and senior officials from the North East, when he received a call informing him of the accident.

The incident, according to media reports, occurred while the deceased singer was on a leisure activity in a yacht on an island in Singapore with family and friends.

As per the petition, Singaporean authorities are said to have conducted the necessary investigation, and “no element of foul play was discovered or alleged by the Singapore authorities”.

The petition claimed that after the incident, Mahanta became the target of public anger and online threats. He has annexed examples of violent messages received on social media, including death threats such as “Come home and we will burn you alive” and “If you step foot into Assam, we will cut you into small pieces”.

The petition also referred to a resolution by the All Assam Lawyers’ Association urging lawyers not to represent accused persons in the case, which “undermines the very foundation of the criminal justice system, where the right to a fair investigation, trial and the right to legal representation are held to be sacrosanct”.

The plea has sought the transfer of investigation to a central agency like the CBI or NIA. The petition argued that the ongoing probe supervised by top Assam executives “renders the investigation process futile” and that multiple FIRs have been filed in Assam and neighbouring states. Alleging trial by media, the plea states: “The petitioner is a victim of irresponsible reporting and the electronic media in running parallel its own ‘investigations,’ pronouncing the petitioner (Mahanta) guilty, and sensationalizing the case even before a formal inquiry was even initiated.”

The petitioner has sought protection of his life and liberty, preservation of evidence from Singapore, and interim protection against further FIRs on the same cause of action.

Mahanta contended that the continued proceedings “despite the absence of any incriminating material in the jurisdiction where the alleged incident occurred, amounts to a gross abuse of the process of law and a violation of the petitioner’s fundamental rights, particularly the right to life coupled with right to fair investigation and trial under Article 21 of the Constitution”.

–IANS

pds/pgh