Two killed as Indian police open fire on rioters

At least two people were killed and eight others injured when Indian police opened fire to disperse rioting mobs in Gujarat state.

The bloodshed is the latest in months of Hindu-Muslim rioting that has killed nearly 1,000 people, mostly Muslims.

It came only hours after the state's top elected official, Chief Minister Narendra Modi, resigned and dissolved the legislative assembly to seek a fresh mandate.

Modi wants elections to be held ahead of schedule in October instead of February of next year.

Opposition parties and human rights groups have criticized the decision, saying early polls could lead to more Hindu-Muslim violence.

Firm dates for the elections will be set by the Election Commission in New Delhi, which said that it will make its decision only after reviewing the law and order situation in the state.

The clashes, in which a Muslim and a Hindu were killed, took place in the town of Viramgam, about 40 miles west of Ahmadabad, Gujarat's commercial capital, police said.

A curfew was imposed in the area following the incident, the official said.