Sidhu Moose Wala a popular Punjabi musician and rapper who had joined the Congress before the Punjab elections, was shot and killed.

Moose Wala had run for the Mansa Assembly seat on a Congress ticket.

With a margin of 63,323 votes, he was beaten by AAP’s Dr Vijay Singla. Moose Wala, who hails from Moosa, a village in Mansa district, joined the Congress in November last year amid considerable excitement. After the Congress granted him a ticket from the Mansa Assembly constituency, the then-sitting Mansa MLA, Nazar Singh Manshahia, turned against the party, stating that he would oppose the controversial singer’s candidacy.

Moose Wala became a member of the Congress party in December of last year, months before the state’s Assembly elections.

The singing sensation had stated in the presence of Punjab President Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and state party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu that his objective was to “help the Punjabis.”

Charanjit Singh Channi, the state’s chief minister at the time, had welcomed him to the party by saying:

“He (Moose Wala) has won the hearts of everyone. He is a son of a farmer and his father is an ex-army officer. I am sure he will make Congress party proud, I welcome him on behalf of Congress.”

Meanwhile, BJP politician Manjinder Singh Sirsa took aim at the AAP-led Punjab government in a tweet, saying, “Law and order situation in Punjab is utterly out of control currently.” Yesterday, the AAP Punjab government reduced security for social celebrities, and today, Sidhu Moose Wala, a well-known Punjabi singer and a Congress leader, was shot at by unknowns in Mansa.