Haryanvi singer-Youtuber Ankit Balyan shot dead in Shamli

Youtuber and Haryanvi singer Ankit Balyan was shot dead by unidentified assailants outside a gym in Shamli district on Wednesday evening, police said.

The incident took place in the Kotwali police station area when Balyan was coming out of the gym, they said.

Speculation was rife that Balyan was planning to contest upcoming panchayat polls, but there was no official confirmation from authorities or his associates immediately on it and if that could be the reason behind his killing.

Superintendent of Police M P Singh told reporters that police rushed 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," he said.

According to police, the assailants arrived on two motorcycles and opened several rounds of fire at Balyan. He died on the spot.

Police are examining CCTV footage from the area to identify the attackers, officials said.

Balyan was a Youtuber with over 3.66 lakh subscribers. He featured in his videos as a singer and performer with different collaborators. Several of his videos showed the use of guns, firearms and SUVs.