Guwahati, Jan 31: A court in Guwahati on Friday rejected for the second time the bail petition of singer Amritprava Mahanta, who has been in judicial custody for the past three months in connection with the death of legendary Assamese singer Zubeen Garg.
Mahanta’s counsel moved the bail plea again on Friday, but the court declined to grant her relief.
In the petition, the defence submitted that Mahanta had performed with Zubeen Garg across Assam and outside the state and had accompanied him to Singapore at his request for a festival. The plea described Garg as a “fatherly figure” to the 29-year-old singer.
The petition stated that Mahanta came to know only after reaching Singapore that she had been allotted the same room as Garg and that she was not in a position to object to the arrangement “in a foreign land.” It further claimed that she was unaware of the yacht ride until the previous day.
“It is submitted that she had no role either in visiting Singapore or in the yacht trip. It is submitted that after the deceased drowned, she tried her best to open his mouth by putting her hand. It is further submitted that the investigation has already been completed and the chargesheet has been submitted, and there is no whisper of allegation which constitutes any offence under any provision of law against the present accused person,” the court order recorded.
The defence also argued that the only allegation against Mahanta was that she did not prevent the deceased from swimming without a life jacket, submitting that such an “omission” does not constitute a criminal offence. It further stated that no overt act had been attributed to her and that the prosecution had failed to explain her role or any conspiracy in the case.
Opposing the bail plea, the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) submitted that Mahanta was “fully aware” of both the accommodation arrangements and the yacht ride. The order records the SPP’s submission that although the cause of death was drowning, “the circumstances leading to the drowning” indicate a criminal conspiracy among the accused.
According to the SPP, Mahanta, in conspiracy with other co-accused, agreed to stay in the same room with Garg and continuously fed him alcohol, specifically Black and White whisky, allegedly provided by co-accused Shyam Kanu Mahanta. The prosecution further alleged that during the yacht journey, Mahanta failed to inform others about the quantity of alcohol Garg had consumed the previous night, leaving him incapacitated to swim in the sea.
The SPP argued that the offence was heinous and had a serious impact on society, and that releasing the accused on bail before the completion of the trial would hamper the effective administration of criminal justice.
After hearing both sides, the court rejected Mahanta’s bail petition.
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