SINGAPORE: Popular Indian singer-songwriter Zubeen Garg, who died in Singapore a day before he was slated to perform at a festival, had drowned in the waters off Lazarus Island after declining a life jacket, a coroner's court heard on Wednesday (Jan 14).
Mr Garg, 52, was with a yacht party on Sep 19, 2025 and initially wore a life jacket but removed it and later declined to put on a second one offered to him, the chief investigating officer told the court in the opening of the inquiry.
At the time, he was also severely intoxicated and several witnesses saw him trying to swim back to the yacht when he went limp and began floating with his face in the water.
He was promptly rescued back to the yacht and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was administered to him, but he was pronounced dead later that same day.
Mr Garg has a medical history of hypertension and epilepsy, with his last known epileptic episode in 2024, the court heard.
It is unclear if he had taken his regular medicine for epilepsy on the day of the incident, with the evidence of eyewitnesses insufficient to establish that he had actually taken it.
The Singapore police do not suspect any foul play in his death.
Before the inquiry opened on Wednesday, Mr Garg's uncle read a statement he had prepared to the court, in which he raised several concerns the family had over the death.
He said that Mr Garg had walked out of his hotel room "alive and full of promise" on Sep 19, 2025, but he was gone by the end of the day.
"Between those two moments lie a sequence of events the family doesn't fully understand," said Mr Garg's uncle.
He requested a full and chronological examination of events, seeking clarity on who planned the outing, who accompanied Mr Garg, and his physical condition and health "at every stage".
He said what troubled him most was why Mr Garg entered the sea, and asked if he did so by his own free will or whether he was encouraged or "insisted" to do so by others.
Mr Garg's uncle also asked whether there was any delay in the administration of medical assistance and said the family members in India "all want to know the truth".
Mr Garg's wife was unable to attend the inquiry but raised similar concerns, which included whether the police's conclusion that there was no foul play included any omissions, failures to act or lapses.
At the outset, State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said some of the facts sought were not relevant to the circumstances that led to the death.
He told Mr Garg's uncle that he was asking for a level of detail that touches on issues irrelevant to establishing the facts that immediately occurred following or before Mr Garg's death.
He told the uncle that he was free to ask questions of the various witnesses who would take the stand. A total of 35 witnesses are slated for the inquiry, including witnesses on the yacht, the boat captain, police officers and paramedics.
The chief investigating officer told the court that Mr Garg was in Singapore for the North East India Festival in September 2025.
On Sep 19, 2025, Mr Garg left his hotel and boarded a yacht at the Marina at Keppel Bay. There were about 20 people on the yacht, which included Mr Garg's friends and colleagues.
According to the chief investigating officer, the party had some snacks, drinks and alcohol on the boat. Several witnesses said they saw Mr Garg drinking alcohol, with one witness saying he had consumed a few cups of liquor, gin and whisky, along with a few sips of Guinness Stout.
The group dropped anchor between Lazarus Island and St John's Island.
A kayak was prepared for use and Mr Garg donned a life jacket, which was later described by a witness as too big for him and jumped into the sea to swim along with a few others.
During this first swim, he removed his life jacket and later went back on the yacht and was heard saying that he was tired.
When he decided to resume swimming, Mr Garg was offered a second, smaller life jacket, but he declined to wear it.
He entered the water without a life jacket and started swimming in the direction of Lazarus Island alone, said the chief investigating officer.
Members of the group on the yacht shouted at others to bring him back, as he was not wearing the safety equipment.
Mr Garg turned back when others shouted at him to return, but while he was swimming back to the yacht, he suddenly became motionless and floated face down in the water.
He was quickly rescued and taken back to the yacht, where CPR was administered. Within two minutes of receiving a distress call, the Police Coast Guard dispatched a patrol craft, which arrived within nine minutes of receipt of the call.
The police officers took over CPR and noted that Mr Garg did not have a pulse and was not breathing.
The yacht was guided to Marina South Pier, about three nautical miles or 6km away, and Mr Garg was taken by ambulance to Singapore General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at about 5.15pm.
An autopsy performed on Mr Garg determined the cause of death to be drowning.
Some injuries were found on his body but they were found to have been sustained during CPR and rescue efforts.
Medications for his hypertension and epilepsy were found in his blood, with no other drugs detected.
A toxicology analysis found that Mr Garg had a blood alcohol concentration of 333 milligrams per 100ml of blood, which suggests severe intoxication resulting in impaired coordination and reflexes, the court heard.
For comparison, the legal limit in Singapore is 80 milligrams per 100ml of blood.
The police also seized a 750ml bottle of Scotch whisky with 43 per cent alcohol from Mr Garg's hotel room that was 25 per cent full.
The bottle had been gifted to Mr Garg before the incident.
The investigating officer said Mr Garg was swimming in the sea off St John's Island without a life jacket despite repeated reminders from the captain to don one, and efforts made by other witnesses to ensure he wore one.
One of the witnesses, who was an employee of Mr Garg and a family friend, said he was concerned about Mr Garg's sleep cycle as he was sleeping less and only during the day.
He was worried about his health due to Mr Garg's history of seizures, which he had been having since 2017.
The court heard that a witness had attempted to visit Mr Garg at his hotel the day before the drowning at 1pm, but Mr Garg was asleep and left his room at only about 8pm that day.
The evidence of several witnesses, provided via their statements to the court, stated that Mr Garg had no suicidal tendencies and that he was not pushed into the water but had jumped in himself for a swim.
The state counsel also played video footage showing Mr Garg in the water, including the first swim, when he removed his life jacket.
The inquiry continues.
Continue reading...
Mr Garg, 52, was with a yacht party on Sep 19, 2025 and initially wore a life jacket but removed it and later declined to put on a second one offered to him, the chief investigating officer told the court in the opening of the inquiry.
At the time, he was also severely intoxicated and several witnesses saw him trying to swim back to the yacht when he went limp and began floating with his face in the water.
He was promptly rescued back to the yacht and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was administered to him, but he was pronounced dead later that same day.
Mr Garg has a medical history of hypertension and epilepsy, with his last known epileptic episode in 2024, the court heard.
It is unclear if he had taken his regular medicine for epilepsy on the day of the incident, with the evidence of eyewitnesses insufficient to establish that he had actually taken it.
The Singapore police do not suspect any foul play in his death.
CONCERNS BY NEXT-OF-KIN
Before the inquiry opened on Wednesday, Mr Garg's uncle read a statement he had prepared to the court, in which he raised several concerns the family had over the death.
He said that Mr Garg had walked out of his hotel room "alive and full of promise" on Sep 19, 2025, but he was gone by the end of the day.
"Between those two moments lie a sequence of events the family doesn't fully understand," said Mr Garg's uncle.
He requested a full and chronological examination of events, seeking clarity on who planned the outing, who accompanied Mr Garg, and his physical condition and health "at every stage".
He said what troubled him most was why Mr Garg entered the sea, and asked if he did so by his own free will or whether he was encouraged or "insisted" to do so by others.
Mr Garg's uncle also asked whether there was any delay in the administration of medical assistance and said the family members in India "all want to know the truth".
Mr Garg's wife was unable to attend the inquiry but raised similar concerns, which included whether the police's conclusion that there was no foul play included any omissions, failures to act or lapses.
At the outset, State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said some of the facts sought were not relevant to the circumstances that led to the death.
He told Mr Garg's uncle that he was asking for a level of detail that touches on issues irrelevant to establishing the facts that immediately occurred following or before Mr Garg's death.
He told the uncle that he was free to ask questions of the various witnesses who would take the stand. A total of 35 witnesses are slated for the inquiry, including witnesses on the yacht, the boat captain, police officers and paramedics.
CHIEF INVESTIGATOR TESTIFIES
The chief investigating officer told the court that Mr Garg was in Singapore for the North East India Festival in September 2025.
On Sep 19, 2025, Mr Garg left his hotel and boarded a yacht at the Marina at Keppel Bay. There were about 20 people on the yacht, which included Mr Garg's friends and colleagues.
According to the chief investigating officer, the party had some snacks, drinks and alcohol on the boat. Several witnesses said they saw Mr Garg drinking alcohol, with one witness saying he had consumed a few cups of liquor, gin and whisky, along with a few sips of Guinness Stout.
The group dropped anchor between Lazarus Island and St John's Island.
A kayak was prepared for use and Mr Garg donned a life jacket, which was later described by a witness as too big for him and jumped into the sea to swim along with a few others.
During this first swim, he removed his life jacket and later went back on the yacht and was heard saying that he was tired.
When he decided to resume swimming, Mr Garg was offered a second, smaller life jacket, but he declined to wear it.
He entered the water without a life jacket and started swimming in the direction of Lazarus Island alone, said the chief investigating officer.
Members of the group on the yacht shouted at others to bring him back, as he was not wearing the safety equipment.
Mr Garg turned back when others shouted at him to return, but while he was swimming back to the yacht, he suddenly became motionless and floated face down in the water.
He was quickly rescued and taken back to the yacht, where CPR was administered. Within two minutes of receiving a distress call, the Police Coast Guard dispatched a patrol craft, which arrived within nine minutes of receipt of the call.
The police officers took over CPR and noted that Mr Garg did not have a pulse and was not breathing.
The yacht was guided to Marina South Pier, about three nautical miles or 6km away, and Mr Garg was taken by ambulance to Singapore General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at about 5.15pm.
An autopsy performed on Mr Garg determined the cause of death to be drowning.
Some injuries were found on his body but they were found to have been sustained during CPR and rescue efforts.
Medications for his hypertension and epilepsy were found in his blood, with no other drugs detected.
A toxicology analysis found that Mr Garg had a blood alcohol concentration of 333 milligrams per 100ml of blood, which suggests severe intoxication resulting in impaired coordination and reflexes, the court heard.
For comparison, the legal limit in Singapore is 80 milligrams per 100ml of blood.
The police also seized a 750ml bottle of Scotch whisky with 43 per cent alcohol from Mr Garg's hotel room that was 25 per cent full.
The bottle had been gifted to Mr Garg before the incident.
The investigating officer said Mr Garg was swimming in the sea off St John's Island without a life jacket despite repeated reminders from the captain to don one, and efforts made by other witnesses to ensure he wore one.
One of the witnesses, who was an employee of Mr Garg and a family friend, said he was concerned about Mr Garg's sleep cycle as he was sleeping less and only during the day.
He was worried about his health due to Mr Garg's history of seizures, which he had been having since 2017.
The court heard that a witness had attempted to visit Mr Garg at his hotel the day before the drowning at 1pm, but Mr Garg was asleep and left his room at only about 8pm that day.
The evidence of several witnesses, provided via their statements to the court, stated that Mr Garg had no suicidal tendencies and that he was not pushed into the water but had jumped in himself for a swim.
The state counsel also played video footage showing Mr Garg in the water, including the first swim, when he removed his life jacket.
The inquiry continues.
Continue reading...