A well-known Russian journalist said Tuesday that he had been fired by a top television channel, linking the dismissal to his political views and attendance of opposition rallies.

"[My mobile phone] was blocked by the channel's security service because I was fired," Pavel Lobkov, who worked for the federal NTV channel, wrote on his Facebook page.

Lobkov told Kommersant-FM radio that his colleagues blamed the sacking on his "excessive political activity", which included attending mass protests against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's rule.

He said he also produced a story on election violations during the parliamentary vote in December, but the channel decided not to air it.

Lobkov, 44, is a veteran reporter who received a prestigious Russian television prize for his work on NTV news. He also hosted a popular programme on celebrity country homes for several years before returning to reporting.

The channel's representatives told Russian media that Lobkov's contract to produce a scientific series had expired at the end of last year, and that the channel no longer planned to make them.

NTV was known for its outspoken news coverage and investigative reporting during the 1990s, when it was privately owned. It was overtaken by Russian gas giant Gazprom in 2001, however, leading to an exodus by many key newscasters and a change in the channel’s editorial policies.