PM Modi, leaders condole Sushma Swaraj's demise, hail her as remarkable leader

Leaders cutting across party lines expressed shock at the sudden demise of former external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi describing her as a remarkable leader who devoted her life to public service and the poor.

President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, former president Pranab Mukherjee and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condoled Swaraj's demise and hailed her as a good orator and a distinguished parliamentarian.

BJP president and Home Minister Amit Shah and several other union ministers, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, also expressed grief and remembered her affectionately.

Swaraj passed away on Tuesday night suffering a massive cardiac arrest. She was 67.

The former Union minister was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences around 9:30 PM in a critical condition and was straight away taken to the emergency ward where a team of doctors attended to her but could not revive .