Stroke of bad luck: Two former woman Delhi chief ministers have died within a month

Sushma Swaraj, who died aged 67, tweeted her condolences on Congress leader Sheila Dikshit's death on July 20, writing that though they were opponents in politics, they were friends in personal life.

When two of your former chief ministers -- both fiery, fiesty women -- die within 17 days, you can only call it a stroke of very, very, very bad luck.

And as that very, very, very bad luck would have it, both -- Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) firebrand leader Sushma Swaraj and three-time Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit -- suffered a sudden cardiac arrest -- a massive one -- and the news of their untimely demise sent a shockwave across the nation, and the world alike.

Swaraj, who died aged 67, tweeted her condolences on Congress leader Sheila Dikshit's death on July 20, writing that though they were opponents in politics, they were friends in personal life.

"I am sorry to know about the sudden demise of Sheila Dixit ji. We were opponents in politics but friends in personal life. She was a fine human being. #SheilaDixit," Swaraj had posted on Twitter.

When a troll told Sushma Swaraj, that like Sheila Dikshit, she too would be remembered after her death, Sushma took it sportingly, tweeting back: "I thank you in anticipation for this kind thought."

Both -- Swaraj and Dikshit -- hold a distinct recognition when it comes to chairing Delhi's CM throne. While Swaraj was the first ever woman chief miniser of Delhi, Dikshit became the CM thrice -- setting another record.

SHEILA DIKSHIT

Sheila Dikshit was admitted to Fortis Escorts Hospital in Delhi in a critical condition, on July 20.

She breathed her last after she suffered a massive cardiac arrest at 3.55 pm.

Dikshit had served as Delhi's chief minister for three consecutive terms between 1998 and 2013. She was succeeded by Aam Aadmi Party's Arvind Kejriwal.

After her stint as Delhi chief minister, she was sworn in as Kerala's Governor in 2014, but resigned in just six months.

In a tweet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Deeply saddened by the demise of Sheila Dikshit Ji. Blessed with a warm and affable personality, she made a noteworthy contribution to Delhi’s development.”

PM Modi also visited Dikshit’s residence to pay his last respect.

SUSHMA SWARAJ

In 1980, 1984, and 1989, Sushma Swaraj unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha elections from Karnal in Haryana. All three times, she was defeated by the Congress Party's Chiranji Lal Sharma.

She was elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha in 1990. In 1996, she was elected to the 11th Lok Sabha from South Delhi. She was Union Cabinet Minister of Information and Broadcasting in 1996, during the 13-day Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. She was re-elected to the 12th Lok Sabha for a second term in 1998.

Under the second Vajpayee government, she retained the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and had additional charge of the Ministry of Telecommunications from March 19 to October 12, 1998.

Sushma left the Union Cabinet from October-December 1998 to serve as the first woman chief minister of Delhi. The BJP lost the assembly elections, and she returned to national politics.

Sushma returned to Parliament in April 2000 as a Rajya Sabha member from Uttarakhand. She was re-inducted into the cabinet as the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, which she held from September 2000 until January 2003.

Just a few hours before she collapsed, rushed to AIIMS and died, Sushma Swaraj had tweeted her thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for revoking Article 370 on Jammu and Kashmir. "Thank you Prime Minister. Thank you very much. I was waiting to see this day in my lifetime."

That was her last communication on the social media platform on which she had over 13 million followers. She was active on tweeting about major happenings, though she decided against contesting the 2019 Lok Sabha elections or on joining the Narendra Modi 2.0 government due to health reasons.