Senior official removed

The secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Ya'an committee in Southwest China's Sichuan province, Xu Mengjia, was removed from his post, the local news portal newssc.org reported on Sunday.

The news portal quoted the decision of the CPC Sichuan Committee, which did not specify the reason of the removal, that Xu will be replaced by Ye Zhuang.

Ya'an was severely hit in a 7.0-magnitude earthquake this year, leaving at least 196 people dead.

After the earthquake, Xu was interrupted by a China Central Television host during the 7 pm news program. The host urged him to stop talking bureaucracy and speak of what practical measures to take to help the victims.