Zubeen Garg
NEW DELHI: Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Sunday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “silence” on late singer Zubeen Garg during the PM’s recent two-day visit to Assam.Garg, who hailed from the state, died on September 19 while swimming in the sea in Singapore, where he was scheduled to attend the North East India Festival.PM Modi arrived in the state on Saturday and concluded his visit on Sunday.“The PM has attended several programmes and addressed the people of Assam for the past two days. But unfortunately, he did not utter a single word about Assam’s heartthrob, late Zubeen Garg,” Gogoi wrote in a Facebook post.“Zubeen da has a special place in the hearts of the Assamese people, and ignoring him is an insult not just to the late artiste but to the entire people of Assam,” he added.Gogoi, who heads the Congress’ state unit and is the son of former chief minister Tarun Gogoi, also criticised the prime minister for not meeting Garg’s family. He pointed out that, in contrast, Lok Sabha leader of opposition and fellow Congress MP Rahul Gandhi paid tribute at Garg’s cremation ground and visited the bereaved family, raising demands for “justice” for the singer-composer.Gandhi visited the family and the cremation ground on October 17. Taking a swipe at chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, a former Congress leader, Gogoi asked, “We want to know who advised the prime minister not to mention Garg’s name. Who prepared his speeches? Or did the Assam chief minister advise the PM not to take Zubeen Garg’s name?”He also demanded that Garg be awarded the Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour. So far, only two people from Assam have received the award.Meanwhile, a special investigation team of the Assam Police has charged four people with murder: festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta, the singer’s secretary Siddhartha Sharma, and his two band members, Shekharjyoti Goswami and Amritprava Mahanta. A fifth accused, suspended police officer Sandipan Garg, Zubeen’s cousin, has been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.In addition, his two personal security officers, Nandeswar Bora and Prabin Baishya, have been charged with criminal conspiracy and criminal breach of trust for allegedly misappropriating funds or property entrusted to them.Assam is scheduled to go to the polls for its assembly elections in April–May 2026.(With PTI inputs)
