KYIV, Aug 15 - The mayor of the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, who was a member of a pro-Russian opposition political party, was found dead in his house with a gunshot wound on Sunday, Reuters reported.

It was unclear whether Konstantin Pavlov's death was a murder or suicide. The National Police of Ukraine said it was establishing the circumstances of the death and had opened a criminal case.

Pavlov, 48, is a member of the Opposition Platform - For Life party. He was elected mayor of Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine which is also the hometown of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, last December.

Pictures posted on social media by Pavlov's fellow party member, Vadim Rabinovich, showed the mayor lying on the floor at the entrance to his residence, with a gun next to his left leg.

Artem Marchevsky, general producer of 112 Ukraine TV channel and also a member of the pro-Russian Opposition Platform - For Life party, said Pavlov was found with a gunshot wound to the head.

Opposition Platform - For Life is one of the main opposition parties in Ukraine.

Pavlov was elected the mayor in December 2020 when he had competed against Dmytro Shevchyk, a candidate who represented Zelensky’s party the Servant of the People. Zelenskiy has called on the people of Kryviy Rih to get out and vote.

However, Pavlov was able to win the vote after incumbent mayor Yuriy Vilkul had urged his supporters to support the opposition candidate.

Denys Monastyrskiy, an ally of Zelenskiy, replaced Arsen Avakov as Ukraine’s internal affairs minister on July 16. Avakov resigned on July 13 without giving the reason for the resignation.

Avakov in March said he would not support imposing sanctions on Zelenskiy's chief rival, former President Petro Poroshenko, adding he was not "an enemy of Ukraine." Avakov served under Poroshenko, who is now under investigation for abuse of office charges he calls politically motivated.

The reshuffle strengthened the power concentrated in the presidential office as the interior minister controls most of Ukraine's law enforcement bodies, from the National Police force down to local police departments, as well as the National Guard. (rt/tl/ez)