Popular Assamese singer Zubeen Garg tragically died in a scuba diving accident in Singapore on Friday. While fans of the singer are in mourning, new details have emerged about the circumstances that led to his death.
Today I visited Zubeen da’s residence in Kahilipara, Guwahati, to offer my condolences to his wife Garima Saikia Garg and his loved ones.
— Gaurav Gogoi (@GauravGogoiAsm) September 20, 2025
Guwahati lies in silence, mourning a loss that feels too heavy to bear. Along with his family, countless well-wishers and fans are grieving… pic.twitter.com/Pi9wMZqCVz
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said Garg, who was in Singapore to attend the North East India Festival, had gone with 17 others on a yacht trip and died while "swimming in the sea without a life jacket."
Popular singer from Assam and youth heartthrob Zubeen Garg, known for songs like 'Ya Ali', died in a scuba diving accident in Singapore on Friday. Garg sustained injuries during a scuba diving accident and was rushed to a hospital, where he died at the intensive care unit while… pic.twitter.com/zf5pIZvj6M
— THE WEEK (@TheWeekLive) September 19, 2025
According to media reports, the chief minister revealed that the lifeguards requested Garg to wear the safety gear. "Garg had initially worn the life jacket, but after a few seconds, he took it off, claiming that it was oversized and he was finding it difficult to swim," the minister was quoted as saying.
Garg was "found floating in the sea, and the crew of the yacht tried to revive him, and he was again given CPR at the port" before being taken to the hospital, the minister said.
Amid allegations of negligence on the part of the festival organisers, chief organiser of North East India Festival (NEIF) Shyamkanu Mahanta claimed that the festival organisers were not aware that the singer and his team members had gone on a yacht trip with members of the Assam Association in Singapore.
"We were holding back-to-back meetings with various stakeholders at a hotel, which is very far from the incident site, when we received the news and we immediately rushed to the Singapore General Hospital," he said.
Authorities are reportedly probing the death as several First Information Reports (FIR) have been filed against Mahanta.
