Almost 24 hours after his helicopter went missing, the body of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was found deep inside the Nallamala forest this morning.

The death of 60-year-old YSR, who led the Congress to two successive election wins in the state and became one of its most powerful chief ministers, has left a huge hole in Andhra politics with the party struggling to find a successor. State Finance Minister K Rosaiah has been made acting Chief Minister.

YSR is survived by wife Vijayalakshmi, son and MP Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and daughter Sharmila.

Also dead in the crash were the CM’s Principal Secretary P Subramanium, Chief Security Officer A S C John Wesley, pilot Group Captain S K Bhatia and co-pilot M S Reddy.

Rosaiah and Chief Secretary P Ramakanth Reddy told reporters it appeared that the helicopter exploded after slamming into a hillock. “That also explains the charred bodies and disintegration of the craft. At first, three bodies were spotted. It took some time to locate the other two bodies in the trees and bushes,” Reddy said.

The body of YSR was found with the seat belt still around him. He was identified by his while dhoti and shirt. Flown to Hyderabad, his body will be kept at the Lal Bahadur Shastri stadium tomorrow for people to pay their last respects before being taken to his hometown Pulivendla in Kadapa for the funeral.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi will be going to Hyderabad. The Union Cabinet, which met in Delhi and condoled his death, decided to accord him a state funeral.

... contd.