Senior Indian politician dies in plane crash

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Indian police have confirmed that Madhav Rao Scindia, one of the leaders of India's opposition Congress Party, died in a plane crash Sunday afternoon.

Scindia was one of eight people -- including a senior Indian bureaucrat and several journalists -- aboard the C90 Cessna plane, flying from New Delhi to the northern city of Kanpur.

It crashed 300 kilometers southeast of New Delhi.

CNN's Satinder Bindra said the plane developed engine problems and attempted a crash landing in waterlogged fields. "The plane was completely charred and burned," he said.

Scindia, 56, deputy head of the Congress Party, was India's former civil aviation and rail minister. He was well known throughout India, and was viewed a possible heir to Congress Party leader Sonia Gandhi.

"The news is already causing consternation in political circles," said Bindra. "It is a big blow, and supporters are gathering outside his home."

Scindia had been due to address a public meeting in Kanpur. The meeting has been cancelled.