Hyderabad, September 04: The bodies of Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Rajashekhara Reddy and his four co-passengers were brought to Kurnool for autopsy at about 1430 hrs IST on Thursday.
A huge crowd of mourners had gathered near APSP parade grounds in Kurnool where an IAF helicopter carrying the bodies landed. Security personnel had a tough time controlling the crowd.
The bodies, which have been charred beyond recognition, have been airlifted by a MI-8 helicopter of the Indian Air Force and have reached Hyderabad.
A large number of Congress workers and supporters have also gathered outside the Congress office in Hyderabad. Many of them were seen wailing and carrying placards praising the dead Andhra chief minister.
The chief minister’s will be kept at Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in Hyderabad for the public to pay their homage.
His body will be flown to his hometown Pulivendula in Kadapa district on Friday when a state funeral will take place, Andhra Chief Secretary P Ramakanth Reddy said.
The Tricolour will fly at half mast in Delhi and all state capital on September 3 and 4. All Central and state government offices in Andhra Pradesh will remain closed September 4.
The mangled and burnt remains along with the charred remains of the YSR and his four co-passengers on board the helicopter was spotted on the top of Rudrakonda Hill, 74 kilometres east of Kurnool by Indian Air Force helicopters at 0830 hrs IST, nearly 24 hours after it lost contact with the Air Traffic Control at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad.
The helicopter deviated 18 km from its path towards east, hit a cliff and crashed.
-Agencies