Amritsar: The fatal shooting of prominent Punjabi social media influencer and makeup artist Mad Sandhu was a calculated, premeditated attack, Punjab Police said on Sunday. Investigators believe two bike-borne assailants “systematically stalked the content creator” before ambushing him at a service station in Amritsar.

Sandhu, born Madhusudan and recognised as one of Punjab's most visible LGBTQ figures, was gunned down on Saturday at a car-wash unit on Loharka Road. He succumbed to his bullet injuries while being rushed to a nearby hospital.
 

Inspecting the crime scene on Sunday, Amritsar Police Commissioner Harmanbir Singh Gill said that preliminary findings clearly point to “a targeted, well-coordinated operation rather than a spontaneous act of violence”.

Investigators confirmed that the assailants tracked Sandhu's movements across the city before striking after he pulled into the car-wash facility on Loharka Road. Following the shooting, the masked attackers fled at high speed along the same route. Police Commissioner Gill disclosed that law enforcement has secured concrete intelligence identifying not only the shooters on the motorcycle but also the masterminds who orchestrated the broader plot behind the scenes.

Faced persistent homophobic abuse

Prior to his death, Sandhu faced persistent homophobic abuse and online trolling due to his open expression of his sexual orientation, a prejudice he frequently countered on social platforms by asserting, “God had made me the way I am”.

Following an autopsy examination, Sandhu was cremated on Sunday in Amritsar as grief-stricken family members, friends, and supporters gathered to bid him an emotional farewell. Amritsar Police confirmed that multiple investigative units are actively pursuing leads to uncover the underlying motive behind the conspiracy and apprehend all co-conspirators involved in the hit.