India’s former foreign minister Sushma Swaraj passes away
NEW DELHI: Former external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj died at the AIIMS here on Tuesday night following cardiac arrest, hospital sources said. She was 67.
The veteran BJP leader was brought to AIIMS in a critical condition but soon passed away, the sources said.
Indian Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan had accompanied her in the hospital.
Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Prakash Javadekar, Prahlad Patel, Piyush Goyal and BJP Working President JP Nadda arrived at the hospital as soon as they got the news.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the death of Sushma, who was External Affairs Minister in his first government, lauding her services in helping Indians abroad.
“An excellent administrator, Sushma Ji set high standards in every Ministry she handled. She played a key role in betering India’s ties with various nations. As a Minister we also saw her compassionate side, helping fellow Indians who were in distress in any part of the world.”
“A glorious chapter in Indian politics comes to an end. India grieves the demise of a remarkable leader who devoted her life to public service and betering lives of the poor.” “Sushma Swaraj Ji was one of her kind, who was a source of inspiration for crores of people,” he said in a series of tweets.
Modi termed it a “personal loss” and recalling her stint as minister when she was always available to help any Indian abroad in trouble.
“Sushma Ji was a prolific orator and outstanding parliamentarian. She was admired and revered across party lines. She was uncompromising when it came to maters of ideology and interests of the BJP, whose growth she immensely contributed to.”
“I can’t forget the manner in which Sushma ji worked tirelessly as EAM in the last 5 years. Even when her health was not good, she would do everything possible to do justice to her work and remain up to date with maters of her Ministry. The spirit and commitment was unparalleled.”
“Sushma ji’s demise is a personal loss. She will be remembered fondly for everything that she’s done for India. My thoughts are with her family, supporters and admirers in this very unfortunate hour. Om Shanti,” he said in a series of tweets.
Swaraj was appointed the foreign minister in the first term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in 2014.
She opted out of the 2019 Indian general elections, citing health reasons.
During her tenure, Swaraj had been active and popular on Twiter reaching out to the Indian diaspora in distress and offering them assistance, said ANI report.