Two suspected sharpshooters carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 each in the murder case of Haryanvi singer and YouTuber Ankit Balyan were killed in a police encounter in Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli on Monday, police said.Mohit (22) and Sumit (24) from Sonepat in Haryana, were injured in retaliatory firing by the police near an Indian Gas warehouse on Kairana Road, according to a statement issued by the Shamli police.The injured accused were taken to the District Joint Hospital in Shamli, where doctors declared them dead, police said.Shamli Superintendent of Police Narendra Pratap Singh said that since the shooting incident on August 26, a high alert was called in the district and checking of vehicles intensified during night hours.Sharing details of the encounter, Singh said, “In the same sequence, police intercepted a car and asked its occupants to stop, following which the occupants fled and allegedly opened fire at the police team. In the ensuing exchange of fire, Mohit and Sumit sustained bullet injuries. They were taken to a hospital where doctors declared them dead.”Balyan was leaving a gym in the Kotwali area of Shamli around 6.45 pm on August 26 when four assailants travelling on two motorcycles opened fire at him. He sustained critical injuries and was rushed to a nearby community health centre, where doctors declared him dead, police said.A video of the attack surfaced on social media, purportedly showing Balyan emerging from the gym and walking towards his car when the incident happened.The post-mortem report confirmed that Balyan sustained five gunshot injuries, including two to the head, according to officials.Police said interrogation of the accused revealed that the shooters had allegedly been hired by absconding gangster Rahul, who is associated with the Gogi gang. Rahul carries a reward of Rs 1 lakh, according to police.Police are also verifying a purported social media post in which a person claimed responsibility for Balyan’s killing. During the investigation, police found that Rahul allegedly sent the shooters, officials said.Two SWAT team personnel, Head Constables Harvinder and Pradeep, also sustained bullet injuries in the exchange of fire, it said.The encounter involved personnel from the Shamli Kotwali police station, Jhinjhana police station and the Shamli SWAT team, police said.Police said three pistols and 26 cartridges were recovered from the accused.Mohit had around 14 cases registered against him in Haryana, while one case was registered against Sumit, police said, adding that their other criminal records are being ascertained.Police teams, along with the Uttar Pradesh STF, are conducting a joint operation to arrest the remaining accused in the murder case.Further legal proceedings in connection with the encounter are under way at the Shamli Kotwali police station, the statement said.