Bandmate Shekhar Jyoti Goswami alleges that the late artist’s manager, Siddharth Sharma and festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta poisoned him.

GUWAHATI: Zubeen Garg’s long-time manager, Siddharth Sharma, was arrested by the SIT on October 1 on charges of criminal conspiracy, murder, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder, following statements from a key witness who alleged that the singer was “poisoned.” Zubeen Garg, 52, died under mysterious circumstances on September 19 while swimming off Singapore’s Lazarus Island during a yacht outing organized as part of the 4th edition of the Northeast India Festival. While initial reports cited drowning, the remand note submitted by the SIT paints a far more sinister picture. According to the remand note accessed by TOI, witness Shekhar Jyoti Goswami, a close associate and bandmate of Garg, in his statement under Section 175 BNSS to the SIT alleged that Sharma and festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta “had poisoned the victim and deliberately chosen a foreign venue to conceal their conspiracy.”Also Read | Guwahati man beaten to death during Dashami celebrations after Zubeen Garg song request; 6 detained Sharma reportedly also instructed Goswami not to share any yacht videos with anyone. Goswami further alleged that Siddharth Sharma forcibly took control of the yacht, causing it to wobble dangerously. He stated that Sharma had insisted on personally supplying liquor and had asked organisers not to arrange drinks, raising suspicions about the contents provided. During Garg’s final moments, when he was gasping for breath and frothing at the mouth and nose, Sharma allegedly dismissed the symptoms as “acid reflux” and was heard shouting, “Jabo de, jabo de” (let him go, let him go)—a statement that has now become central to the investigation. Goswami emphasised that Garg was an expert swimmer who had trained both him and Sharma, making accidental drowning highly unlikely. The SIT remand note states that statements from co-singer Amrit Prabha Mahanta and actress Nishita Goswami corroborated that Sharma had facilitated Garg’s access to liquor and inappropriate company, including arranging shared accommodation with his female co-singer at Pan Pacific Hotel, Singapore. The remand note also highlights Sharma’s failure to provide any satisfactory explanation regarding the supply of liquor and women to Garg prior to his death. Material evidence, including documentary records, financial transactions, and witness statements, prima facie establish Sharma’s culpability in what is now being treated as a premeditated act of murder.