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Congress MP and Deputy Leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party in the Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, has written to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, urging a thorough inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of renowned Assamese singer Zubeen Garg in Singapore this September.
Garg, one of the most celebrated cultural icons of Northeast India, was scheduled to perform at the North East India Festival 2025, organised by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) with support from the High Commission of India in Singapore. In his letter, Gogoi drew attention to a statement made by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in the state Assembly on November 24, where he claimed that findings of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Assam Police suggested that Garg's death "was a murder." The Chief Minister further stated that multiple individuals have been booked and that the alleged crime was planned and executed by a group. Raising serious concerns, Gogoi said one of the accused named in the ongoing investigation had direct links with the organisation of the Singapore festival. According to him, the individual in question ran an organisation that has, over several years, received "substantial payments amounting to several lakhs of rupees" from the MEA for managing similar cultural events. Calling the association between an MEA-linked event's organiser and an accused in a murder case "deeply troubling," the MP sought official clarification on the nature of this relationship. He also expressed disappointment over media reports suggesting that the North East India Festival in Singapore proceeded as scheduled on September 19-2, despite Garg's sudden death. Gogoi said that, given the stature of Zubeen Garg and the shock caused by the incident, it would have been appropriate for the government to cancel or postpone the festival. Stressing that the event was an official Government of India engagement, he urged the MEA to issue a public statement addressing the Assam Chief Minister's claims and clarifying all associations under question. The MP emphasised that the people of the Northeast and the grieving family deserve "truth and justice" and called for the ministry's immediate intervention to ensure transparency in the matter. (ANI)
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