Two suspects in the killing of Haryanvi singer and YouTuber Ankit Balyan were killed in an encounter with police in Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli district on Sunday.
The deceased have been identified as Sumit, 24, and Mohit, 22, both of whom hailed from Haryana’s Sonipat. They are believed to be members of the notorious Gogi gang, which had claimed responsibility for the singer’s murder.
According to police, the duo carried a reward of Rs 50,000 each. While Mohit was accused in 14 police cases, Sumit faced one criminal case.
Balyan was leaving a gym in the Kotwali area of Shamli on Wednesday evening when four assailants travelling on two motorcycles opened fire on him. He was rushed to a nearby community health centre, where he was declared dead.
Two suspects are currently on the run.
On Friday, Seema, the slain singer’s wife, threatened to self-immolate if police failed to arrest her husband’s killers within four days.
Seema, a teacher in Delhi, said she would take the extreme step outside the Shamli subdivisional magistrate’s office or the residence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Police have formed several teams to arrest the assailants and have visited Haryana as part of the investigation.
A day after the killing, a person claiming to be a member of the Gogi gang allegedly took responsibility for the murder in a social media post. Police are examining the veracity of the claim.
Balyan, a resident of Banti Kheda, had made a name for himself in the Haryanvi music industry after an injury ended his career as a state-level kabaddi player. He worked on more than 50 songs as a singer, lyricist and music composer.
