Guwahati woman held over alleged defamatory posts against Zubeen Garg

The Guwahati Crime Branch on Monday apprehended a woman for allegedly posting derogatory remarks against Assam’s cultural icon Zubeen Garg and his family on social media.

The accused has been identified as Sikha Sarma and was reportedly picked up from the Patharquarry area of Guwahati. The action followed a formal complaint lodged by Garima Saikia Garg, wife of Zubeen Garg.

Based on the complaint, police registered a case against Sarma under Sections 152, 196, 299, 351, 352, 353 and 356 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).

In her complaint, Garima alleged that the accused, identified as Sikha Sharma, had been posting offensive and defamatory content about Garg on social media platforms, including Facebook. According to the complaint, the posts questioned the artist’s character and personal life, causing emotional distress to the family and, she claimed, damaging the legacy of the cultural icon who has a large following across Assam.

“I cannot believe someone can write such things. Initially, we chose to ignore her, assuming she was mentally unstable, as we wanted to focus on the main case concerning Zubeen’s death. However, there is a limit to our patience,” Garima said.

She further alleged that the posts amounted to defamation, criminal intimidation, hate speech and communal provocation, and had the potential to disturb law and order in the state.

Garima also stated that the remarks were not limited to Zubeen Garg alone. “She made objectionable comments about my sister-in-law and father-in-law as well. This woman neither respects Assam nor the sentiments of the Assamese people. The derogatory remarks made against me and my family were completely unacceptable,” she said.

Meanwhile, members of the All Assam Zubeen Garg Fan Club also reached the Dispur Police Station to lodge a separate complaint against Sharma over the same issue. Representatives of the fan club confirmed that they would pursue legal action.

Speaking to the press, fan club president Piku Borgohain described the comments as “extremely unfortunate”, particularly at a time when people across Assam are demanding justice for Garg.

“When the public is united in seeking justice for Zubeen Garg, Shikha Sharma has been attempting to divert the issue in a completely different direction,” Borgohain alleged. He also questioned the basis of the allegations made against the artiste and called on the accused to place any purported facts in the public domain.

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