Indian singer Zubeen Garg swam without life vest, drowned near Lazarus Island: Coroner’s court

SINGAPORE - Indian singer Zubeen Garg was “severely intoxicated” when he drowned while swimming in waters near Lazarus Island, a police investigator revealed on Jan 14.

Garg, 53, had consumed alcohol and refused a life vest before jumping off a yacht in September 2025, said Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) David Lim, who was testifying on the first day of a coroner’s inquiry into Garg’s death.

As his friends tried to convince him to swim back to the yacht, Garg suddenly became motionless and began floating face down, added ASP Lim, who is with the Police Coast Guard.

The investigator said the singer was pulled back to the yacht where efforts were made to resuscitate him, but Garg was later pronounced dead in hospital on Sept 19, 2025.

The cause of his death was drowning.

The popular artiste from the north-eastern state of Assam in India was in Singapore for the North East India Festival, a cultural festival organised by the Assamese community in Singapore.

He had been scheduled to perform on Sept 20.

ASP Lim was the first witness to take the stand at a coroner’s inquiry into the death of the singer, which was attended by several members of the public and Garg’s uncle and nephew.

State Counsel Sean Teh said there are 35 witnesses in total in this case, with seven slated to take the stand on Jan 14.

ASP Lim, who took the stand in the morning, said witnesses noted that Garg did not have any suicidal tendencies and was not subjected to duress or coercion before his death.

“He did not wear a life jacket, despite repeated reminders by the yacht captain to wear one,” added the investigator.

Garg had 333mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in his system, which an autopsy report said would have impacted his coordination.

In comparison, the current drink driving limit is 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.

Garg and around 15 other individuals had boarded the yacht at Marina at Keppel Bay at around 2pm on Sept 19, 2025.

According to previous reports, members of the Assam Association Singapore, including its president Abhimanyu Talukdar, were also on the yacht.

The captain of the vessel, who was called to testify, said he saw several passengers including Garg drinking alcohol before boarding the yacht.

The singer was so unsteady, his friends had to hold on to his arms as he boarded the vessel, added the captain and his assistant, who had also testified.

Garg continued to walk unsteadily on the vessel, and often needed help to move around.

The captain’s assistant testified that no one had forced Garg to drink alcohol or enter the water, adding that the singer and his entourage were briefed while on the yacht that they ought to don life jackets before swimming.

The court heard that when they arrived near Lazarus Island at around 2.30pm, Garg put on a life jacket and jumped in for a swim.

However, he removed his life jacket while in the water, as he found it was too big for him, said ASP Lim.

The investigator added that Garg later returned to the yacht and had to be helped up as he was breathing heavily.

“The deceased then decided to resume swimming, and a smaller life jacket was placed over his shoulders but he refused to wear it,” said ASP Lim.

Garg started to swim towards Lazarus Island without a life jacket, while the others on the yacht tried to convince him to swim back.

“Suddenly, the deceased became motionless and was floating face down,” testified ASP Lim, who added that witnesses also saw that he was foaming from the mouth.

Garg was pulled back onto the yacht, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was administered on him while an emergency call was made at 3.36pm.

ASP Lim said a Police Coast Guard boat was dispatched and arrived at the yacht in less than 10 minutes.

The yacht was then guided to travel to Marina South Pier, where an ambulance took Garg to Singapore General Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 5.13pm.

Videos taken from witnesses’ mobile phones were played in court, showing Garg removing his life jacket and subsequently struggling to get onto the yacht.

Before ASP Lim was called to the stand, Garg’s uncle, Mr Manoj Kumar Borthakur, asked if he could read out a statement to the court.

When State Coroner Adam Nakhoda asked what it was about, Mr Manoj said he was concerned about how Garg’s death occurred, adding that he wanted to know exactly what happened.

After State Coroner Nakhoda read the statement privately, he explained that a coroner’s inquiry is to establish the cause of death and the circumstances leading to it, and not to ascribe blame to any party.

Mr Manoj was then allowed to read the statement in court and sought clarity on the events that led to Garg’s death, including whether Garg entered the waters of his own accord or if he was encouraged to do so.

“On Sept 19, Zubeen walked out of his hotel room alive and full of promise, but at the end of the day he was gone,” said Mr Manoj, adding that Garg’s family and fans would like to know the truth.

Another witness called to the stand was Dr Chan Shijia, a pathologist at the Health Sciences Authority.

She testified that there were several injuries found on Garg, including bruising to his chest and lips, but these were consistent with resuscitation efforts.

Medications for hypertension and epilepsy, which Garg had a history of, were found in his blood, with no other drugs detected.

Following Garg’s death, a special investigation team in India charged multiple people, including the organiser of the festival in Singapore, Shyamkanu Mahanta, with murder.

Three other associates of the singer – Siddhartha Sharma, Shekhar Jyoti Goswami and Amritprava Mahanta – were also charged with the offence in India.

The hearing is scheduled to continue on Feb 3 and 4.