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Kabaddi promoter Rana Balachauria’s killer shot dead in Mohali encounter
Karan Pathak, alias Defaulter, 23, was gunned down in a 6am shootout after escaping custody in Kharar area of Mohali district; policeman injured, stable.
Karan Pathak, alias Defaulter, the 23-year-old prime suspect in the high-profile murder of kabaddi promoter Kanwar Digvijay Singh, alias Rana Balachauria, was killed in a police encounter in Kharar on Saturday morning.
The shootout, which occurred around 6am, also left a police constable injured. The personnel was rushed to a nearby hospital, where his condition is reported to be stable. Pathak was declared dead during treatment after being referred to a government hospital in Chandigarh.
According to the police, Pathak was in custody when he complained of chest pain on Friday night. While being taken for medical attention, he reportedly managed to remove his handcuffs and flee around 11.30pm.
“He was tracked down during a search operation in the morning. He opened fire on the police, and when they retaliated, he was initially shot in the leg. Even after falling, he continued firing, leading to the fatal exchange,” a police official said.
Pathak, a school dropout from Amritsar with a history of crime, was a high-priority target following the December 15, 2025, murder of Balachauria. The promoter was gunned down at point-blank range during a tournament in Sector 79, Sohana, in Mohali in front of scores of spectators.
Investigators revealed that the hit was planned as early as October 2025 to seize control of the lucrative kabaddi tournament industry, including sponsorships and player participation. The killing was allegedly orchestrated by foreign-based gangsters Balwinder Singh (Donny Bal) and Amarjit Singh (Khabba).
Pathak and his accomplice, Aditya Kapoor, alias Makhan, who is absconding, approached Balachauria on the pretext of seeking a selfie before shooting him in the head.
A six-state hunt involving the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) led to the arrest of nine individuals. The suspects were tracked across Haryana, Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and West Bengal.
Three accused were recently arrested at Howrah railway station in Kolkata after a dramatic cross-country chase.
While Pathak was the main shooter, Tarandeep Singh, 25, is alleged to have played a critical operational role in the conspiracy.
This marks the second Punjab Police encounter in 48 hours. On January 14, Sukhraj Singh, 20, linked to the Prabh Dasuwal gang, was eliminated for the murder of Valtoha AAP sarpanch Jarmal Singh at a wedding in Amritsar on January 4. The killing was captured on CCTV, sparking outrage. Sukhraj, who was apprehended in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, was killed when he allegedly attempted to snatch a service weapon and escape while in police custody, leading to the shootout.
“Anyone who challenges the law will be dealt with strictly,” a senior officer warned, reiterating the state’s “zero-tolerance” toward organised crime and extortion networks. (With inputs by Ravinder Vasudeva)
