While India mourned the death of senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, the feeling resonated across the border in Pakistan.
As India's first female foreign minister, Swaraj was very active on Twitter, responding to everyone who tweeted to her. People took to Twitter to share issues, including getting stranded in a foreign country without a passport. Swaraj used to put them in touch with the respective Indian Embassies and sort out their problems.
Swaraj won many Pakistani civilians' hearts after she extended her assistance to those in need of India visas, especially for medical reasons.
A Pakistani Twitter user, Hira Shiraz, sought an Indian visa for her daughter's open-heart surgery. When she tweeted to her, the former foreign minister granted the visa without a second question. This gesture won the hearts among many Pakistanis who approached her for help.
Another Pakistani resident approached the foreign minister asking her for a medical visa for his cousin's liver transplant. He said that after Allah, Swaraj is his last hope. The tweet read, "After ALLAH you are our last hope.. kindly allow islamabad embassy (meaning Indian High Commission) to issue us medical visa."
Swaraj immediately replied, "India will not leave your hope. We will issue the visa immediately."
Other instances include another Pakistani citizen asking a visa which Swaraj granted quickly.
The news of her death came as a massive shock to the Pakistani residents who she helped. One Twitter user described her as an iron lady. She wrote, "Sad to hear shocking news about #SushmaSwaraj. The personality of Sushma mam had an image of the Iron lady. She also helped the Pakistani people, may Allah give peace to the departed soul. #RIPSushmaJi"
Another user wrote, "We as Muslims don't believe in dusra Janam... But if there's any, I would want #sushmaswaraj to be born in Pakistan and become a politician here..Such a talented human she was, the best India could get as their FM.#sushmasawraj #SushmaJi"
