The victim, Tara Singh Hayer, was the editor of the Punjabi-language weekly, Indo-Canadian Times, known for its pro-human rights stance.

"He was just getting out of his car when he was shot. It has all the makings of an assassination," Constable Grant Learned of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.

Mr Learned said police had no suspects and no witnesses to the shooting, which happened on Wednesday, other than neighbours.

Mr Hayer, 64, a well-known member of the Indo-Canadian community, was the target of an assassination attempt in 1988 which left him in a wheel-chair.

Possible motives

As editor of what is considered the leading Punjabi-language newspaper in North America, Mr Hayer used his paper to speak out against human rights abuses and to foster freedom of expression.

Sikh leadership elections have been linked to the murder

His son, Sukhdev Hayer, said he believed the killing was an attempt to intimidate voters in upcoming elections for leadership at a Sikh temple in the Vancouver area.

In July, Mr Hayer was excommunicated by the Sikh clergy, who declared him guilty of religious misconduct, and called on Sikhs all over the world to sever social, religious, economic and political ties with Mr Hayer.

The ruling came after a long running dispute in the Sikh community between fundamentalist and moderates over the use of tables and chairs in its religious temples.

Fundamentalists consider the tables and chairs to be improper additions to a temple.