Gunmen seemingly posing as journalists shot dead a former Indian member of parliament and his brother live on TV as they were being taken in handcuffs to hospital by police, authorities said.

Atiq Ahmed, 61, who had been jailed since 2019 and was convicted of kidnapping, was answering reporters' questions late Saturday when he and his brother Ashraf were shot at close range, the television images showed.

"According to preliminary information, three persons posing as journalists approached them and opened fire... The attackers have been held and are being questioned," police official Prashant Kumar said.

The TV clip in the northern city of Prayagraj shows the assailants shouting Hindu slogans after the brazen attack.

The two victims were from India's Muslim minority but police did not say whether they were investigating a possible sectarian motive in the killings.

The brothers were deeply involved in India's criminal underworld - the ex-MP was reportedly facing more than 100 different cases - and press reports said the attackers were petty criminals.

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