Twitter was flooded with messages of grief after the sudden demise of former Union Minister Sushma Swaraj. What was uncanny – perhaps even prophetic – was her last tweet Tuesday evening where she thanked Prime Minister Modi for scrapping Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, telling him that she had been waiting to see this day in her lifetime.
प्रधान मंत्री जी – आपका हार्दिक अभिनन्दन. मैं अपने जीवन में इस दिन को देखने की प्रतीक्षा कर रही थी. @narendramodi ji – Thank you Prime Minister. Thank you very much. I was waiting to see this day in my lifetime.
— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) August 6, 2019
PM Modi tweeted multiple times remembering his former colleague and her place in history.
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 bettering lives of the poor. Sushma Swaraj Ji was one of her kind, who was a source of inspiration for crores of people.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 6, 2019
Sushma Swaraj’s successor at the external affairs ministry, S Jaishankar, said what many would agree with – that the foreign ministry will miss her the most. She did leave behind some large boots to fill.
Deeply shocked to learn of the passing away of Smt Sushma Swaraj. Difficult to accept this news. The whole nation grieves, the Foreign Ministry even more so.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 6, 2019
Former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley shared a heartfelt post. We shall miss her too, sir…
Saddened, pained & broken on demise of Sushmaji. She was one of the most outstanding politicians in the Present Era. She distinguished in all positions. She held Senior Positions with the Party, NDA Govt. & while in opposition. She leaves behind a void which is difficult to fill.
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) August 6, 2019
Union Minister Smriti Irani rued the “unfilled promises” of a meeting, as she expressed her sense of loss.
I have an axe to grind with you Didi . You made Bansuri pick a restaurant to take me for a celebratory lunch. You left without fulfilling your promise to the two of us.
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) August 6, 2019
Swaraj’s popularity across party lines is evident from the number of Congress leaders who visited her home to pay their respects, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The latter also tweeted his praise of Swaraj.
I’m shocked to hear about the demise of Sushma Swaraj Ji, an extraordinary political leader, a gifted orator & an exceptional Parliamentarian, with friendships across party lines.
My condolences to her family in this hour of grief.
May her soul rest in peace.
Om Shanti ?
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 6, 2019
Loktantrik Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav issued a touching tribute to Swaraj, sharing a photo-collage of some moments they had shared.
यकीन नहीं हो रहा कि सुषमा स्वराज जी हमारे बीच नहीं रहीं। सन 1974 से हमारे पारिवारिक संबंध रहे| राष्ट्र ने एक महान नेता, मुखर वक्ता तथा प्रतिष्ठित सांसद खो दिया है। देशहित में उनके योगदान को हमेशा याद रखा जाएगा| उनकी आत्मा को शांति प्रदान हो तथा परिजनों को संबल मिले यही कामना है| pic.twitter.com/V7mPdU6Jpz
— SHARAD YADAV (@SharadYadavMP) August 7, 2019
In other news is the disarray in Congress: leader Jyotiraditya Scindia went against his party’s position and came out in support of the Centre’s move on Kashmir. Now we understand at least one of those “50 shades of grey” that Congress’s Manish Tewari had referred to in his Lok Sabha speech Tuesday.
I support the move on #JammuAndKashmir & #Ladakh and its full integration into union of India.
Would have been better if constitutional process had been followed. No questions could have been raised then. Nevertheless, this is in our country’s interest and I support this.
— Jyotiraditya M. Scindia (@JM_Scindia) August 6, 2019
Assam MP Gaurav Gogoi used the Northeast as an example of the decisions on Article 370. Make what you will of it.
Being from Northeast, I know that special constitutional status of different states integrated them with the Union. For eg, people cannot- enter Mizoram without permit, buy land in Meghalaya. Even few laws in Nagaland are made as per tribal customs. #IstandforConstitution ??
— Gaurav Gogoi (@GauravGogoiAsm) August 7, 2019
And in the US, Californian Representative and Presidential candidate Kamala Harris is planning in advance: she promises to come down hard on gun regulation if and when she occupies the Oval Office. President Trump may have something to say about that…
As president, I will take executive action to:
→Revoke the licenses of gun manufacturers & dealers that break the law
→Require anyone who sells more than 5 guns/yr to run a background check on all gun sales
→Ban the importation of AR-15-style assault weapons
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 7, 2019