Assamese singer Zubeen Garg, best known in Bollywood for hits like ‘Ya Ali’, has gotten caught in a controversy due to a viral audio clip attributed to him. In the clip, Zubeen is allegedly heard insulting India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna. The Ratna was last awarded to the late musician Bhupen Hazarika, who also hails from Assam.
Since Hazarika had passed away recently, many fans were celebrating the Bharat Ratna and upset at Zubeen’s alleged abuse of the same. An FIR has been lodged in Lanka in the Hojai district against Zubeen by Satya Ranjan Borah, who is a Bharatiya Janata Party functionary.
“We have registered an FIR and investigating the short audio clip said to be in Garg’s voice. In the viral clip, the Bharat Ratna has been abused,” Hojai’s Superintendent of Police, Ankur Jain, reportedly told the Hindustan Times.
The police official added that they do not have any video evidence to prove the voice in the clip is Zubeen’s. Zubeen has publicly opposed the Centre’s Citizenship Amendment Bill, and even written a new song to the protest it. The lines from the song, ‘Politics na karibo Bandhu...(do not do politics my friend) are heard in the clip before the alleged abuse.
Zubeen has gone as far as offering to return his payment for singing the BJP’s campaign song for the 2016 Assembly elections in Assam. The singer has also written an open letter to the chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal.