Singer Amritprabha Mahanta, one of the seven accused in the death case of Assamese singer Zubeen Garg, was released from Haflong sub-jail on Tuesday, October 13, four days after the Gauhati High Court granted her bail.
Justice Pranjal Das of the Gauhati High Court granted bail to Mahanta on Friday, October 9, against a bail bond of Rs 50,000 and two sureties of the same amount, Special Public Prosecutor Ziaul Kamar told reporters.
The High Court had heard Mahanta’s bail petition over several days, with arguments concluding on Wednesday. The court reserved its order before delivering the decision on Friday.
According to Kamar, the prosecution presented its arguments over four to five days during the hearings before the court decided to grant bail.
Mahanta was lodged at Haflong sub-jail along with Shekhar Jyoti Goswami, another accused in the case and a former bandmate of Garg. The remaining accused are lodged at Tamulpur jail.
Her release marks the first reported instance of an accused securing bail in the main case related to Garg’s death. Earlier, two of the singer’s personal security officers had obtained bail in a separate case involving financial transactions. That case is distinct from the main investigation into the circumstances surrounding the singer’s death.
Garg, 52, died on September 19, 2025, while swimming in the sea off Singapore. He had travelled to the country to attend the North East India Festival.
The singer’s death triggered widespread protests across Assam, with fans, members of the public and various organisations demanding a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Following the incident, the Assam government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the case. Several people who had accompanied Garg during his Singapore visit were arrested as part of the investigation.
Those arrested included festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta, Garg’s manager Siddhartha Sharma, and band members Shekhar Jyoti Goswami and Amritprabha Mahanta.
The SIT subsequently filed a chargesheet against the accused, bringing different charges against those allegedly involved in the case.
Amritprabha Mahanta, Shyamkanu Mahanta, Siddhartha Sharma and Shekhar Jyoti Goswami were charged with murder. Garg’s cousin, Sandipan Garg, was charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
The singer’s personal security officers, Nandeswar Bora and Paresh Baishya, were charged with criminal conspiracy and criminal breach of trust.
Mahanta’s release on bail comes as the case continues to draw considerable public attention in Assam. Garg was one of the most popular singers in the state, and his death prompted widespread demands for accountability and a comprehensive investigation.
The grant of bail to Mahanta does not amount to an acquittal, and the charges against her remain subject to the judicial process.