New Delhi, August 7: Not just India but people across the nation weep today as India loses a stalwart, a gem ‘Sushma Swaraj’ as she breathed her last suffering a cardiac arrest. A prolific orator and outstanding leader, Sushma Swaraj not only helped Indian nationals but also others seeking entry to India. She was a ‘messiah’ for everyone as she left no stones unturned to help people who were in need of help.
Although the two neighbouring countries India and Pakistan have been at loggerheads, Sushma Swaraj being the foreign minister made sure all help and aide to be provided if anyone is in need. One such striking case for which she earned much praise was of Shahzaib Iqbal from Lahore. Iqbal had sought Sushma Swaraj's help seeking a medical visa for the liver transplant of his cousin. In 2017, Shahzaib Iqbal tweeted, “After ALLAH you are our last hope. kindly allow Islamabad embassy (meaning Indian High Commission) to issue us medical visa.”
In response, Swaraj had tweeted, "India will not belie your hope. We will issue the visa immediately."
Sushma Swaraj also assured medical visas to two other Pakistani nationals seeking medical visas. In response to a request from Sajida Baksh who said that she underwent a liver transplant but developed complications and now needed urgent follow-up, Swaraj said, “Yes. We will give you the medical visa.”
Moving ahead, she also assured a visa to Kishwar Sultana who was awaiting liver transplant in a hospital in Noida.
On Independence Day in 2017, the Ministry of External Affairs had announced that India would provide medical visas to all bonafide Pakistani patients. As ties between the two countries soured over various issues, the ministry had announced in May that only a letter of recommendation by then Pakistan Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Sartaj Aziz would enable a Pakistani national to get a medical visa for India. However, a patient from Pakistan-administered Kashmir, seeking treatment in New Delhi for liver tumour, was given a visa on July 18.
Sushma Swaraj then said that he needed no recommendation from the Pakistani government for a medical visa because the territory ‘is an integral part of India.’ Since August 15, however, Pakistani nationals seeking medical treatment have not been denied visas.
But apart from being a minister, she also became a point-of-contact for people to reach out when they needed help. One of the most active accounts on Twitter, she became the person people reached out to in terms of distress. 'Help was a tweet away,' became literal.