Zubeen Garg case: NEIF organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta moves bail plea, hearing on April 22

Shyamkanu Mahanta, a key accused in the death case of singer Zubeen Garg, on April 10 filed a bail application before a special fast-track court in Guwahati.

Special public prosecutor Ziaur Kamar said the defence had requested that the hearing be scheduled for April 13. However, the court has fixed April 22 as the date for the bail hearing. He added that the prosecution will file its objection to the bail plea.

Mahanta had earlier moved a bail application but later withdrew it.

The case is currently being heard on a day-to-day basis by a special sessions fast-track court.

Zubeen Garg died on September 19 last year while swimming near Lazarus Island in Singapore, a day before he was scheduled to perform at the North East India Festival (NEIF).

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Assam Police’s CID probed the incident and filed a chargesheet in December, naming seven accused. Four of them, including Mahanta, have been charged with murder.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had earlier stated in the Assembly that the case was a “plain and simple murder.”

Meanwhile, Singapore Police, which conducted a separate investigation into the incident, concluded that there was no evidence of foul play. Authorities in Assam, however, have maintained that the findings of the foreign probe will not impact the case being pursued in the state.