By Kamalika Sengupta,Manjiri Joshi,News18

Copyright news18

Ahead of his imminent arrest, in a writ petition filed before the Supreme Court of India and notarised in Malaysia, festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta, an accused in the Zubeen Garg death case, had sought the transfer of the ongoing investigation to a central agency such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or the National Investigation Agency (NIA), citing serious threats to his life and property.
Mahanta was aware that he would be arrested and hence had filed the petition for protection. News18 has a copy of the petition.
The petition stated that senior executive authorities of Assam have made derogatory and prejudicial remarks against Mahanta through their official social media accounts, despite the matter being under active investigation. Such actions, he contended, compromise the integrity and impartiality of the probe.
It stated that authorities in the sovereign nation of Singapore are currently conducting an independent investigation into the incident. Mahanta has not been treated as an accused, suspect, or even a witness during the course of their inquiry.
The petitioner argued that there exists neither a legal nor factual basis to involve him in criminal proceedings in India. His portrayal as an accused, the petition said, is unsupported by credible evidence or investigative findings and instead appears to be driven by extraneous factors, particularly public outrage and a media-led trial, which cannot serve as grounds for criminal liability.
Expressing grave concern over the violation of his fundamental right to a fair and impartial investigation, Mahanta submits that judicial intervention is required to ensure that any further inquiry is conducted by a neutral, independent central agency.
The petition also highlighted that Mahanta is being denied his right to enter India, especially the state of Assam, due to alleged threats to his life and liberty. Instead of providing protection, the authorities have reportedly issued a Look-Out Circular (LOC) against him, which, he argued, is being misused punitively rather than employed as a preventive measure. This, he claimed, infringes upon his right to a fair opportunity to defend himself.
Furthermore, he alleged that he is being targeted as part of a larger conspiracy orchestrated by State agencies, with the intention of making him a scapegoat to pacify public anger fuelled by media narratives. He emphasised that he is already under profound emotional distress due to the sudden and tragic loss of his close friend and companion, singer Zubeen Garg.
The petition refuted the allegations of his involvement, stressing that no credible evidence links him to the incident. The current attempt to implicate him, it maintained, is rooted in mob sentiment and media sensationalism. His public vilification, both on social media and in mainstream media, has already tainted public opinion, fundamentally undermining the principles of natural justice.
According to the petition, Mahanta first learned of Garg’s tragic accident around 1:00 PM IST through a phone call from Garg’s manager, Siddharth Sharma, who informed him about the incident that had occurred during travel.
Meanwhile, accused Shyamkanu Mahanta and Siddharth Sharma have been remanded to 14 days in police custody. Two others — musician Shekharjoti Goswami (associated with Garg since 2014) and singer Amritprava Mahanta — have also been placed in 14-day police custody as of October 3.