Sushma Swaraj once said that she wanted to “shave her head and wear a white saree” as a mark of protest if Sonia Gandhi ever became the Prime Minister.
Bengaluru: Sushma Swaraj, the tall BJP leader had once said she wanted to shave her head, wear a white saree and sleep on the floor, eating only chickpeas akin to a Hindu widow.
But why on earth would she have made such a statement?
Also read: Here’s why PM Narendra Modi remains indebted to Sushma Swaraj
That’s because after Congress won the 2004 Lok Sabha election, it backed Sonia Gandhi to become the Prime Minister of India. It was this move that hurt the deceased leader’s “sensibilities”.
"It hurt my sensibilities as even after the culmination of British rule and the sacrifices made by fellow Indians, no one (native) was there at that time to lead the country and a foreigner was being chosen,” she was quoted as saying in a media report.
It might be recalled that Sushma Swaraj was fielded against Sonia Gandhi in Ballari for Lok Sabha elections 1999. Sushma Swaraj went on to lose the election but maintained good relations with the mining city.
When Sushma Swaraj was asked about her decision to tonsure her head, she remained unapologetic.
"If after 60 years of independence, we coronate another foreigner for the top job then it would have meant that 100 crore people were incapable... It would be hurting the sensibility of people. This was my purpose of fighting the Bellary elections and it was a mission for me. In Bellary, I lost the battle, but won the war," Sushma Swaraj had reportedly said.
United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Sushma Swaraj are two women who have taken politics to greater heights.
Though the two were diametrically opposite in their views, they were very good friends. At the time of writing this article, Sonia Gandhi had penned an emotional letter to Sushma’s husband, paying rich tributes to her.
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