Sushma Swaraj: The minister who was only a tweet away

Sushma Swaraj had a many splendoured political career that spanned over four decades but it was the times she played cupid or declared Mars as the limit to ensure an Indian citizen's homecoming that will remain etched in hearts, minds -- and on social media.

As people in India and abroad mourned the sudden passing away of the former foreign minister on Tuesday night, they recalled fondly the politician who was always just a tweet away and used the microblogging platform to reach out.

In her five-year stint as External Affairs minister during the Narendra Modi-led government (2014-19), she became accessible enough for Indians to take the liberty of sharing even the smallest of their grievances, almost as if they were on a family WhatsApp group.

So much so that one gentleman even queried her about his refrigerator going kaput.

Swaraj united separated couples, expedited travels of bereaved families, got Indians out of trouble in foreign lands and more.

In August 2016, a Faizan Patel took to Twitter to draw Swaraj's attention to his impending honeymoon which he would end up spending alone if the minister did not intervene swiftly.

Posting a photo of himself beside an empty seat with a picture of his wife, Patel tweeted, "This is how I am travelling with my wife as of now."
"Ask your wife to contact me. I will ensure that she is with you on the next seat."
When a distressed wife sought the leader's help to get her husband released from a jail in Azerbaijan, she said, "I have asked Indian Embassy in Azerbaijan to send me a report on this."
When a sister reached out to her to expedite the passport application of her brother who was suffering from cancer and needed to travel, pat came the reply from the minister,"Yes, you will get the Passport immediately. @rpoghaziabad."
When a daughter expressed her wish to travel to Patiala for her father's last rites, Swaraj, despite holidays, pushed her case in the Indian High Commission in Canada, and tweeted, "... But this a very compassionate case. Please facilitate her visit to India. She has to attend the last rites of her father in Patiala. @HCI_Ottawa."
She won the internet over when she politely responded, "Brother I cannot help you in matters of a Refrigerator. I am very busy with human beings in distress."
"AAPKI BAHUT YAAD AAYEgi ek di #Sheela Dixit ji ki tarah Amma," the user wrote, to which she had replied, "Is bhawana ke liye apko mera agrim dhanyawad. (I thank you in anticipation for this kind thought)."