Sushma Swaraj, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader who was former foreign minister, died on Tuesday evening after a cardiac arrest. She was 67.
She was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi after 9 pm on Tuesday. She had a kidney transplant three years ago and was not keeping well. Swaraj had not contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and was not part of the government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that a “glorious chapter in Indian politics has come to an end”. Just hours before her death, Swaraj had tweeted congratulating PM Modi, saying she was happy about the abrogation of Article 370 and glad that she was able to witness it during her lifetime.
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Swaraj gained immense popularity as India’s foreign minister as she reached out to people through her Twitter account and responded promptly to people in distress. She was a nine-time parliamentarian, the youngest minister of a state – in Haryana, former Delhi chief minister, leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, among the many of her achievements as a political leader.
President Ram Nath Kovind said that she “epitomised dignity, courage & integrity in public life.”
Leaders from opposition political parties – from Rahul Gandhi to Mamata Banerjee – mourned her death.
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