National Conference Block President Abdul Rehman Ganaie (65) was shot at twice by two motorcycle-borne militants from a close range at around 1.35 PM, police said.
They said Ganaie was rushed to the Bone and Joint Hospital at nearby Barzulla where doctors declared him "brought dead".
Ganaie was targetted by militants as he was leaving home to offer Friday prayers at a local mosque, police said.
Soon after the shooting, police cordoned off the area and launched a manhunt for the assailants who fled from the scene.
No militant outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed outrage at Ganaie's killing but was surprised at the silence of netizens over the incident.
"I suppose because Abdul Rehman Ganai was an NC activist his killing today is not worthy of the outrage we often see here in Twitteristan," Omar wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter.Com.
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This is the first political killing in Srinagar this year and comes barely three weeks after a sensational attack by militants on a security patrol near Rainawari in downtown city which left seven CRPF personnel injured.
Militants also made an abortive attempt to set off a car bomb at Nowgam bypass in the city last month. However, timely detection of the explosive laden vehicle averted a major tragedy.
Police yesterday claimed to have solved the case with the arrest of five Lashker-e-Toiba (LET) operatives but added that three others including the mastermind remained at large and efforts are on to nab them.