<p>Guwahati: Assam Pradesh Congress President Gaurav Gogoi on Monday alleged that there has been a 'deliberate delay' in the probe into the death of singer Zubeen Garg, while the role of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in this connection is ''extremely dubious''.</p><p>It appears that there is an attempt to divert the investigations into a different direction, and the accused are being given time to remove pieces of evidence as they are "close to the BJP", the Congress leader claimed.</p><p>''People had high hopes from the chief minister in ensuring justice for the singer, but from his recent statements, it appears that he is trying to hide facts and protect the two main accused,'' Gogoi said at a press conference here, referring to the North East India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and Zubeen Garg’s manager Siddharth Sharma.</p><p>Garg died on September 19 by drowning while swimming in the sea in Singapore where he had gone to perform in the festival.</p><p>Gogoi alleged that it seems that either the CM is not coming out with the facts, or he is ''incompetent and inefficient''.</p><p>Ten days have passed since Garg's death and ''we still don't know where Siddhartha Sharma and Shyamkanu Mahanta are,'' he said.</p><p>"It seems that there is an attempt to divert the investigations into a different direction and people are asking why the CM is treating both Mahanta and Sharma like VIPs, when it is these two people who can give the details regarding Zubeen's death,'' the state Congress president claimed.</p><p>''Are the two accused such big VIPs that the people of Assam will have to wait for them to arrive and give their statements till after Durga Puja festivities are over,'' he said.</p><p>Sarma on September 27 said that 'lookout notices' through the Interpol have been issued against the two, asking them to come to Guwahati and make their statements on October 6, failing which the police would intensify a search operation for them.</p><p>The police have not been able to get a single statement from either Mahanta or Sharma, and Durga Puja cannot be an excuse for the law enforcers, the Congress MP asserted.</p><p>Gogoi alleged that the CM, instead of asking the CID's Special Investigating Team (SIT) to conduct a speedy inquiry, is trying to slow it down.</p>.Zubeen Garg's death | Was it a mishap or murder? Investigators want access to evidence in Singapore.<p>''The reason for this can be the close proximity of the two accused to the BJP. It has already been reported in the media that Sharma is a member of the party's cultural cell,'' he said.</p><p>It has been found that the festival organiser is closely associated with senior BJP leaders from Jorhat and ''a conspiracy was hatched long ago to use Zubeen for their political interests'', Gogoi alleged.</p><p>Mahanta also has ''very good relations'' with NDA ministers at the Centre and various states, including chief ministers, and they frequently attended the festivals organised by him in different parts of the country and abroad, the deputy leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha claimed.</p><p>The police have also failed to tell people about the whereabouts of the two accused and why they are being given so much time, he added.</p><p>''These two have the most intimate knowledge of what had happened during the last two hours before the death of Zubeen Garg. But they are being given time by the BJP government to wipe out evidence, contact lawyers and save themselves,'' he alleged.</p><p>Gogoi said that the findings of the various SIT investigations ordered by the BJP government have never been made public and ''the people of Assam can be sure that till Himanta Biswa Sarma remains the chief minister in the state, there will be no justice for Zubeen Garg''.</p><p>Assam police, instead of conducting a proper inquiry, are ''beating up protestors who are demanding justice, interrogating other people and arresting supporters of the singer, but when it comes to the two accused, they are doing a cover-up job, Gogoi alleged.</p><p>The SIT has already issued notices to 10 people, including Shyamkanu Mahanta, Siddharth Sharma and members of the Singapore Assam Association, to appear before it and record their statements.</p>
<p>Guwahati: Assam Pradesh Congress President Gaurav Gogoi on Monday alleged that there has been a 'deliberate delay' in the probe into the death of singer Zubeen Garg, while the role of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in this connection is ''extremely dubious''.</p><p>It appears that there is an attempt to divert the investigations into a different direction, and the accused are being given time to remove pieces of evidence as they are "close to the BJP", the Congress leader claimed.</p><p>''People had high hopes from the chief minister in ensuring justice for the singer, but from his recent statements, it appears that he is trying to hide facts and protect the two main accused,'' Gogoi said at a press conference here, referring to the North East India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and Zubeen Garg’s manager Siddharth Sharma.</p><p>Garg died on September 19 by drowning while swimming in the sea in Singapore where he had gone to perform in the festival.</p><p>Gogoi alleged that it seems that either the CM is not coming out with the facts, or he is ''incompetent and inefficient''.</p><p>Ten days have passed since Garg's death and ''we still don't know where Siddhartha Sharma and Shyamkanu Mahanta are,'' he said.</p><p>"It seems that there is an attempt to divert the investigations into a different direction and people are asking why the CM is treating both Mahanta and Sharma like VIPs, when it is these two people who can give the details regarding Zubeen's death,'' the state Congress president claimed.</p><p>''Are the two accused such big VIPs that the people of Assam will have to wait for them to arrive and give their statements till after Durga Puja festivities are over,'' he said.</p><p>Sarma on September 27 said that 'lookout notices' through the Interpol have been issued against the two, asking them to come to Guwahati and make their statements on October 6, failing which the police would intensify a search operation for them.</p><p>The police have not been able to get a single statement from either Mahanta or Sharma, and Durga Puja cannot be an excuse for the law enforcers, the Congress MP asserted.</p><p>Gogoi alleged that the CM, instead of asking the CID's Special Investigating Team (SIT) to conduct a speedy inquiry, is trying to slow it down.</p>.Zubeen Garg's death | Was it a mishap or murder? Investigators want access to evidence in Singapore.<p>''The reason for this can be the close proximity of the two accused to the BJP. It has already been reported in the media that Sharma is a member of the party's cultural cell,'' he said.</p><p>It has been found that the festival organiser is closely associated with senior BJP leaders from Jorhat and ''a conspiracy was hatched long ago to use Zubeen for their political interests'', Gogoi alleged.</p><p>Mahanta also has ''very good relations'' with NDA ministers at the Centre and various states, including chief ministers, and they frequently attended the festivals organised by him in different parts of the country and abroad, the deputy leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha claimed.</p><p>The police have also failed to tell people about the whereabouts of the two accused and why they are being given so much time, he added.</p><p>''These two have the most intimate knowledge of what had happened during the last two hours before the death of Zubeen Garg. But they are being given time by the BJP government to wipe out evidence, contact lawyers and save themselves,'' he alleged.</p><p>Gogoi said that the findings of the various SIT investigations ordered by the BJP government have never been made public and ''the people of Assam can be sure that till Himanta Biswa Sarma remains the chief minister in the state, there will be no justice for Zubeen Garg''.</p><p>Assam police, instead of conducting a proper inquiry, are ''beating up protestors who are demanding justice, interrogating other people and arresting supporters of the singer, but when it comes to the two accused, they are doing a cover-up job, Gogoi alleged.</p><p>The SIT has already issued notices to 10 people, including Shyamkanu Mahanta, Siddharth Sharma and members of the Singapore Assam Association, to appear before it and record their statements.</p>