An Indian billionaire close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to buy a broadcaster seen as the last major critical voice on television, stoking fears about media freedom in the world's largest democracy. Gautam Adani -- Asia's richest person, with interests ranging from Australian coal mines to India's busiest ports -- announced late Tuesday that his firm had indirectly acquired a 29-percent stake in NDTV and was bidding for a further 26 percent. "This is sort of the last nail on the coffin of independent, mainstream, broadcast media," says journalist Hartosh Singh Bal. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES