Assam Cops Return From Singapore, Share Info On Zubeen Garg's Death

Police officers who went to Singapore to look into the death of Assam's cultural icon and singer Zubeen Garg today said the island nation's authorities will soon share statements and information from their investigation.

CID Special DGP Munna Prasad Gupta said the Singapore authorities have already shared the postmortem report of Zubeen Garg through the Indian High Commission, and called the report "very important from the investigation point of view."

"On the 20th, we had a meeting with the Indian High Commissioner in Singapore and discussed all the legal assistance required from the Singapore Police. We emphasised that we need their cooperation in a time-bound manner since our investigation must be completed within 90 days," Gupta told NDTV in Guwahati today.

The Assam special investigation team (SIT) visited key locations in Singapore linked to the case, Gupta said, adding the Singapore Police have assured a positive response in the next 10 days on a request for legal assistance under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT). India sent the request on September 30.

"From my experience with the CBI, I know that international cooperation often takes a long time. However, in this case, we are fortunate that the Singapore authorities responded positively and promptly," Gupta said.

Out of 11 non-resident Indians (NRIs) linked to the case, 10 have recorded their statements; seven people have been arrested over financial irregularities.

"A huge amount of money was found in their bank accounts that could not be justified by their salaries, leading to the registration of a disproportionate assets case by the Chief Minister's Vigilance Cell under the Prevention of Corruption Act," Gupta said.

He said over 70 people have been questioned so far, and further investigation is continuing.

"We are working day and night to complete the investigation within the prescribed timeframe," he said.

Singer Garima Saikya Garg appeared before the SIT on Friday.

Zubeen Garg died under mysterious circumstances in Singapore on September 19 while swimming in the sea. He had gone there to attend the 4th edition of the North East India Festival.

Singapore Police are carrying out an independent investigation into the matter; on October 17, the Singapore Police said the preliminary investigation has not indicated any foul play in Zubeen Garg's death.