Overview
- Karan Pathak, alias Defaulter, identified as the principal shooter in Rana Balachauria’s December 15 killing, was fatally shot during an exchange with Punjab Police on Saturday morning in the Mohali area.
- Officers say Pathak fled CIA custody late Friday after complaining of chest pain during a hospital transfer, triggering an intensive, multi-district search.
- Police report he opened fire when confronted, injuring a constable whose condition is stable, before being hit by retaliatory shots and later declared dead at a hospital.
- An FIR has been registered over the escape, a separate case is being lodged on the encounter, and investigators are probing how he obtained a pistol and whether anyone aided him.
- Authorities previously arrested multiple suspects across several states in the case, which investigators describe as a planned hit linked to efforts to control the kabaddi tournament circuit.