Panipat: Haryanvi singer and YouTuber Ankit Balyan was shot dead by unidentified assailants outside a gym in Shamli district on Wednesday evening, police said.
The incident occurred in the Kotwali police station area as Balyan was leaving the gym. According to police, the attackers arrived on two motorcycles and fired several rounds at him. Balyan died at the scene.
According to reports, police teams were sent to the spot after receiving information about the shooting. “The body has been sent for a post-mortem examination, and an investigation is underway. Police teams have been formed to arrest the accused,”police told reporters.
The killing has also drawn a political response. Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav described Balyan’s death as “highly condemnable” and alleged that the law-and-order situation had been reduced to “zero”. He called for an investigation into whether political rivalry was linked to the killing.
Yadav also described the incident as an attack on the Jat community.
There has been speculation that Balyan was considering contesting the upcoming panchayat elections. However, authorities and his associates had not officially confirmed this immediately after the incident, nor was there any confirmation that a possible electoral plan was connected to his killing.
Police are continuing their investigation and efforts to identify and arrest those responsible. Meanwhile, reports state that Bholu Shahpuriya, associated with Sonipat’s Gogi gang, claimed responsibility on Instagram, alleging Baliyan had supported the gang’s rivals and made a song about an attack on its leader.