AFP
A prominent left-wing Indian journalist critical of Hindu nationalist politics has been shot dead in the south-western Karnataka state, police say.
Gauri Lankesh, 55, was found lying in a pool of blood outside her home in the city of Bangalore. The motive for the crime was not immediately clear.
She was shot in the head and chest by gunmen who arrived by motorcycle.
Journalists in India are being increasingly targeted by radical Hindu nationalists, activists say.
Gauri Lankesh, who edited a weekly newspaper, was known as a fearless and outspoken journalist.
Last year, she was convicted in a defamation case over one of her articles. She was appealing against the verdict.
She had returned home in her car on Tuesday night and was opening the gate when the attackers shot her, police said. She died on the spot.
AFP
Officials said they suspected she had been under surveillance by the gunmen. An investigation has been opened.
Her death has been widely condemned, with Karnataka state's chief minister Siddaramaiah calling it an "assassination on democracy".
The watchdog Reporters Without Borders said that radical nationalist journalists have targeted other writers, with online smear campaigns and threats of physical reprisals.
"With Hindu nationalists trying to purge all manifestations of 'anti-national' thought from the national debate, self-censorship is growing in the mainstream media," the group said.
India ranked 136 out of 180 countries in the group's 2017 World Press Freedom Index.
BBC News
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