This Week in Explainers: How the Zubeen Garg death case is unravelling

India has discovered natural gas in the Andaman basin, beginning a new chapter in energy production. This could be a big milestone for the country, helping it meet its goal of self-reliance in energy security.

Bihar’s final voter list after a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has been released. The voter count has dropped by six per cent, with lakhs of names being removed from the final roll.

Assamese singer Zubeen Garg’s death has sparked outrage across the state. The musician died on September 19 after he went swimming during a yacht outing in Singapore’s St John’s Island. A probe has since been launched in Assam into his death.

Here’s all this and more in our weekly wrap from India.

1. Oil India Limited (OIL), a Maharatna company under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, has found natural gas in its second exploratory well drilled in the Andaman Shallow Offshore Block. The discovery was made at the Sri Vijayapuram-2 well, located about 17 km from the Andaman coastline at a water depth of 295 metres and drilled to a target depth of 2,650 metres.

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Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri described the development as “an ocean of energy opportunities”. “The size of the gas pool and its commercial viability will be verified in the coming months,” he wrote on X. The discovery could be a big boost for India’s energy security. We explain here.

2. Tragedy struck Tamil superstar Vijay’s campaign rally after a stampede killed dozens of people, including children. A massive crowd had turned up at the actor-turned-politician’s rally in the Karur district.

However, a disaster unfolded reportedly during the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader’s speech when the crowd surged suddenly. At least 40 people died and 124 others were injured in the crush at the rally. Among the dead were a two-year-old and a couple just days away from tying the knot. Here’s a look at their heartbreaking stories.

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3. The Election Commission (EC) has released Bihar’s final electoral roll after holding a Special Intensive Revision of the voter lists in the state. The final Bihar voter list has 7.42 crore electors.

The final number of voters has plunged by 47 lakh from the 7.9 crore on June 24, before the exercise. The draft list issued on August 1 included 7.24 crore electors after the names of 65 lakh voters were deleted. Read our story to know why lakhs of names have been struck off from Bihar’s final voter list.

4. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has been declared a terrorist organisation by Canada. Recognising it as a “transnational criminal group”, the Canadian government said the gang creates a “climate of insecurity in these communities by targeting them, their prominent community members, businesses and cultural figures.”

This comes as ties between India and Canada continue to improve under Prime Minister Mark Carney, after taking a nosedive under his predecessor, Justin Trudeau. India, for years, has said it is trying to extradite members of the Bishnoi gang, but the requests have not been acted on by the Canadian government. So, what does the latest move by Ottawa mean? We explain here.

5. Crimes have increased in India, with cognisable offences in 2023 rising by 7.2 per cent from 2022. Crimes against women saw a marginal surge of 0.7 per cent from 4.45 lakh cases to 4.48 lakh during this period.

Cybercrimes have also significantly spiked in the country, while murders have declined. On average, India registered a crime every five seconds, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Here’s what the latest data has revealed.

6. Musician Zubeen Garg’s death in Singapore has led to an outpouring of grief and anger across Assam. The singer died, reportedly, after he went swimming during a yacht outing in Singapore’s St John’s Island. The singer was in the Southeast Asian country to attend the 4th edition of the NorthEast India Festival.

Four arrests have been made after several FIRs were filed in the state against Zubeen’s manager Siddhartha Sharma, NorthEast India Festival organiser Shyamkanu Mahanta and others. The singer’s autopsy report has been provided to the Indian authorities. We take a detailed look at this story.

This is all we have for you this week. If you like reading our explainers and want to stay updated, you can bookmark this page.