Zubeen Garg’s demise has left Assam and the nation in deep mourning. The singer, often hailed as the voice of Assam and a cultural icon, tragically passed away in Singapore on September 19. Following public demand for clarity over the circumstances of his passing, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma confirmed that a second post-mortem will be conducted on Tuesday.
Assam CM orders second post-mortem for Zubeen Garg
As reported by PTI, The second post-mortem will take place at Guwahati Medical College Hospital at around 7:30 am, under the supervision of a team from AIIMS Guwahati, following requests from certain sections in Assam for clarity.Chief Minister Sarma said, “It (second postmortem) is not a demand from the public but from certain fringe elements, and we have decided to conduct it with his wife’s consent.”He added, “We do not want to create any controversy over Zubeen, so this decision was taken.”
CM Sharma explains reasoning behind post-mortem
Sarma explained his personal view, “I personally was not interested in ‘cutting up his body’ but when a section, even if they are in a minority, demands it, ‘my personal wish does not matter. This is democracy.’”He further noted, “After the Singapore doctors had conducted the autopsy, I don’t think it was necessary for another postmortem as they have more technical expertise, but there should not be any scope for any section to indulge in any kind of politics over Zubeen.”
Funeral to take place with state honours
Following the second post-mortem, Zubeen Garg’s funeral will take place on the outskirts of Guwahati with full state honours. The Chief Minister said, “It will take around two hours in the morning, and so his final journey will begin from 9.30 am instead of the earlier scheduled time of 7.30 am.”Preparations are underway in Kamarkuchi NC village, with authorities and family members coordinating to ensure the funeral reflects his stature in the community.
Efforts made to digitally preserve singer’s voice
In a tribute to the legendary singer, efforts are being made to digitally preserve Zubeen Garg’s voice to protect it from AI misuse. Musician and long-time collaborator Manas Robin told PTI, “With technology making massive strides, especially with AI-generated software, it is very much possible that Zubeen’s voice samples taken from the internet could be used by other singers/performers as their own in the future.”
