Ankit Baliyan murder: Two shooters killed in encounter

Five days after Haryanvi singer and YouTuber Ankit Baliyan was shot outside a gym near the local police station, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Rajeev Krishna described the killing as a pre-planned conspiracy. He said the police would dismantle the whole network behind the crime, not just those who carried out the attack.

Two suspected sharpshooters connected to the Gogi gang, Sumit (24) and Mohit (22) from Sonipat, were killed in an early morning encounter on Kairana Road after they fired at police checkpoints set up after the murder. Two constables were injured. Police recovered pistols, cartridges, a motorcycle, and a phone at the scene. Two other alleged shooters, Satyam and Aryan, are still at large.

On August 26, Baliyan was shot as he left a gym in Shamli's Kotwali area and walked to his car. Four men on two motorcycles opened fire. Police said he was hit by five bullets, including two to the head, and was declared dead at a community health centre. CCTV footage later showed the attackers following him and firing several rounds before escaping toward Haryana. Investigators believe the attackers had watched his movements in advance, with two men involved staying at a local hotel days earlier to track his routine.

The DGP said the investigation showed the crime was planned. The shooters wereorganized,, the victim's movements were tracked, weapons and an escape plan werearranged,, and protection was set up after the attack. "Our objective is not merely to reach the shooters. Those who hatched the conspiracy, provided resources and weapons, got the victim's movements monitored and provided protection to the accused- the entire chain will be brought within the ambit of law," he said.

Shortly after the murder, a social media post claiming to represent the Gogi gang took responsibility. The post said Baliyan had supported their rivals and made a song about the 2021 courtroom killing of gangster Jitender Mann, also known as Gogi, in Delhi's Rohini court. Baliyan's 2023 track, "Bhari Court Mein Goli Maarenge Meri Jaan", received millions of views. Police now say the song had angered gang members for some time and linked Baliyan's gotra to the rival Tillu Tajpuria.

Earlier, the singer received threats over a video and publicly explained that he had only acted in it, and that the lyrics and tune were not his. "Despite this, information has emerged during the investigation that the gang was linking him to the Gogi gang," Krishna said.

The DGP warned that being outside Uttar Pradesh would not protect those responsible for the crime. "Those sitting outside Uttar Pradesh's borders and conspiring to commit crimes should not live under the illusion that the distance will keep them beyond the reach of law." Police are investigating possible coordination from jails in Haryana and Delhi, as well as the role of missing suspects linked to the Gogi gang. "Let me assure the media that the Uttar Pradesh Police's action will not end here," Krishna said.

This assurance is especially important to the family, who first demanded it. After the murder, retired soldier Satbir Singh, Baliyan's father, stood in the street as residents blocked the road and his wife sat with their son's body. He filed the complaint and told reporters he wanted only one thing. "I want the man who killed him. I don't want anything else. The protest will continue." He insisted Ankit had no criminal connection that could explain the attack. The courtroom song, he said, was years old. There was no extortion, no gym quarrel the family knew of. "What does that song have to do with today's incident?" He gave the administration four days, warned that a soldier's son's blood would not be allowed to "mix with the soil," and said his army comrades would stand with him if the police failed.

On Monday, after hearing about the encounter in Bantikhera, Satbir's tone changed, but his demand remained the same. He thanked Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and the police. "What we want is that this gang must be uprooted." He called the two deaths "half justice." He said full justice would come only when everyone involved, "two or four," was caught, especially the mastermind "pulling the strings." His wife, Seema, and sister, Reena, praised the Shamli and STF teams and said the remaining suspects must be arrested soon. Ankit's mother, Amaresh Baliyan, asked the chief minister to catch those still at large.