NEW DELHI, September 4 (RIA Novosti) - At least eight people have committed suicide in southern India's Andhra Pradesh state after the death of Chief Minister Yedugoori Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy in a helicopter crash.

The son of the deceased politician, Jagan Mohan Reddy, pleaded on local television on Friday for people not to commit suicide because of his father's death.

"Eight people committed suicide after hearing of my father's death and eight others attempted suicide. That is no way to show him respect. My father was always a happy and cheerful person. Let's be courageous. Stop killing yourselves," Jagan said on television.

According to the IANS news agency, 67 people have died in the state either from shock or by committing suicide after hearing about Reddy's death.

Reddy's strong grip over his Congress Legislature Party ensured that he would have completed his five-year term without any problems. Within hours of his death, however, infighting had broken out over who should inherit his seat.

Reddy was bound for Chittoor, in the southern part of the state at the time of Wednesday's accident. There were also two of his staff members and two pilots on board the helicopter, The Times of India said.