Police had barred public gatherings in the northwestern state of Rajasthan out of fear that it could lead to more communal violence. But authorities in Udaipur, a city of around half a million people in the southern part of the state, decided to let a short march take place.

Senior Rajasthan police official, Dinesh M.N., told reporters, that around 7,000 people joined the march and that it passed off peacefully. There have been protests elsewhere in India over Tuesday's shocking killing, and they have also passed without any major incident.

Federal police have interrogated the suspected killers, who posted two videos online, one showing assailants slashing the tailor around the head and neck as he bent to take measurements in his shop.

In the second video, two Muslim men brandished a meat cleaver while claiming responsibility for slaughtering the tailor, Kanhaiyalal Teli, saying he had insulted the Prophet Mohammad.

They also alluded to Nupur Sharma, a former spokeswoman for the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose remarks about the Prophet earlier this month triggered domestic and international outrage.

India's Home Minister Amit Shah said in a tweet that federal police had taken over the investigation into "the brutal murder" of Kanhaiya Lal Teli, giving the victim's full name.

"The involvement of any organization and international links will be thoroughly investigated," Shah said.

Late on Wednesday, a spokesperson from Pakistan's foreign ministry rejected reports in some Indian media that linked the suspects to a Pakistan-based organization.

The two assailants had slashed Teli's head and throat in an attack while the tailor was taking measurements, according to Bhawarlal Thoda, a city administrator in Udaipur.

According to Thoda, the tailor had been detained over a social media post in support of the BJP spokeswoman that was traced to his mobile telephone, and that after being released, Teli had told police on June 15 that he was being threatened by some group.

"Terrorists executed my father in the most shocking way, the country must stand with our family to demand justice," the victim's son, Yash, told Reuters after his father's body was cremated on Wednesday.

He said the culprits should be tried and sentenced to death and denied that his father had made any remarks that would be offensive to other religions.

Politicians and prominent Islamic preachers condemned the killing.

"The incident has shocked followers of Islam. The heinous act committed by two men is absolutely un-Islamic," said Maulana Ahmed Siddiqui, a Muslim cleric based in Udaipur.

Threat to Modi

Authorities said they had suspended internet services in several parts of Rajasthan to prevent circulation of the video.

"The mood is tense and almost all shops are closed today," Thoda said. The city of around half a million people is one of the major tourist draws in the desert state and is known for its luxurious hotels, including the well-known Taj Lake Palace.

In another video clip posted online, one of the assailants also went on to threaten Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying their blade would find him too.

The federal government late on Wednesday asked social media platforms to immediately remove content that encouraged, glorified or justified the killing.

The Electronics and Information Technology Ministry said in a notice that the removal was necessary "to prevent any incitement and disruption of public order and to restore public peace and harmony".

Modi's pursuit of a "Hindu first" agenda since coming to power in 2014 has stoked communal tensions in India, a country with a ghastly history of Hindu-Muslim violence. And many Muslims, who make up 13 percent of the population, complain of feeling more marginalized due to Modi's policies.

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