Ludhiana/New Delhi, July 30 (IANS) From Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the man on the street - hundreds of people Wednesday mourned the death of young singer Ishmeet Singh, who drowned in a freak accident in a beach resort in the Maldives Tuesday.

In Ludhiana, shops in his residential locality, the school and college where he studied, and some other local institutions remained closed as a mark of respect to the departed singer.

Ishmeet's body reached New Delhi from the Maldives Wednesday and was flown in a chartered plane to his home city. The Punjab government arranged the aircraft.

The prime minister Wednesday expressed shock over the tragic death of the young celebrity singer, and called up Ishmeet's family to condole his death an official here said.

"The prime minister was quite shocked and saddened after hearing about the death of Ishmeet," an official of the prime minister's office said.

The prime minister shares the grief of Ishmeet's parents and family, the official added.

The 19-year-old singer, who won the 'Amul Star Voice of India-2007' reality show last November, went to the Maldives Monday to perform at a carnival Aug 1.

The singer was with the family till Monday and boarded a flight to Mumbai from Chandigarh the same day en route to the Maldives. Ishmeet drowned in the swimming pool of a beach resort.

Shocked over the untimely death of the budding singer, his family and relatives sought an investigation into his death.

Even as scores of mourners kept pouring in at the singer's family home, questions were being raised about the circumstances leading to the talented singer's death at the resort near the Maldives' capital Male.

"He had a great career ahead of him. We cannot even understand how he can die so young? We are getting only sketchy reports from the Maldives. Only those accompanying him can tell us what actually happened. He did not know swimming. Why would he jump into the deep end of a pool?" questioned Ishmeet's uncle Charan Kamal Singh.

His uncle said the mild-tempered, soft-spoken Ishmeet had no enemies.

The family here received a call from Gurmit Makkar, chief executive of Big Events Company, Tuesday evening that Ishmeet was killed in an accident.

He was under a three-year contract with a music company after winning the "Voice of India" contest, with the legendary Lata Mangeshkar crowning him.