"She Would Hug Me Whenever We Met": Priyanka Gandhi Mourns Sheila Dikshit

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra expressed her condolences on the death of former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit and said she will miss her "wise counsel".

"Sheilaji will always be remembered for her years of exemplary governance and immense contribution to the development of Delhi. I will miss her wise counsel, her sweet smile and the warmth with which she would hug me whenever we met," Ms Gandhi tweeted.

Ms Gandhi's brother Rahul Gandhi too offered his condolences after Sheila Dikshit's death.

I'm devastated to hear about the passing away of Sheila Dikshit Ji, a beloved daughter of the Congress Party, with whom I shared a close personal bond.

My condolences to her family & the citizens of Delhi, whom she served selflessly as a 3 term CM, in this time of great grief.

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 20, 2019

Priyanka Gandhi's mother and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi reaching Sheila Dikshit's residence this evening. Her body has been taken to her home in Delhi's Nizamuddin area; her last rites will take place tomorrow.

Sheila Dikshit, the longest serving chief minister of Delhi, died of a cardiac arrest today at a Delhi hospital. She was 81.

Sheila Dikshit was admitted to Escorts hospital this morning. She died at 3.55 pm today, her family confirmed.

Condolences poured in from across the country on the veteran Congress leader's death.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ram Nath Kovind and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also condoled her death on Twitter.

Sheila 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.

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

Born in Punjab's Kapurthala, Sheila Dikshit was credited with numerous people-friendly programmes.