Former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj passes away at 67
New Delhi : Former external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj passed away suddenly on Tuesday night after she suffered a cardiac arrest. 67-year-old Iron lady was better known for her strong helping hand to many Indians in distress abroad.
Swaraj, who was India’s first full-time woman foreign minister (Indira Gandhi held additional charge of the ministry when she was prime minister) suffered the cardiac arrest late in the evening and was immediately taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). She died after efforts to revive her failed.
"She was brought to the hospital after she had collapsed at home. She reached AIIMS emergency at about 09:35 pm," said a hospital spokesperson.
A team of doctors attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to revive her, but she couldn’t make it. "All resuscitative measures were taken but she could not be revived," the spokesperson added.
In her last tweet, at 7:23 pm, Swaraj posted: “Thank you Prime Minister. Thank you very much. I was waiting to see this day in my lifetime.” Her tweet was in reference to Lok Sabha abrogating Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir and converting the state into two Union territories — J&K and Ladakh.
Prime Minister Narenda Modi condoled her death and said it is his 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 wrote on Twitter.
