Sheila Dikshit remembered as architect of modern Delhi on birth anniversary; Kejriwal, Manickam Tagore pay tributes

Shiela Dikshit, often referred to as the architect of modern Delhi, was born on 31 March, 1938 in Punjab’s Kapurthala. She served as Delhi’s chief minister for three consecutive terms - from 1998 till 2013. The Congress veteran was defeated in 2013 by the Aam Aadmi Party. Dikshit was appointed as the Governor of Kerala in 2014. In 2017, she was supposed to be the Congress face for the Uttar Pradesh polls but the party forged an alliance with Samajwadi Party and Akhilesh Yadav was projected as the chief ministerial candidate instead of her. She returned to Delhi’s politics in 2019 when she was appointed as Delhi State Congress Committee President. She passed away the same year in July. On her birth anniversary, the Congress party remembered how she helped modernise the national capital. Through the official Twitter handle, the party said Dikshit has been the longest-serving chief minister of any state and gave credit to her for introducing measures like Bhagidari System and BRT system.

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal remembered her on her birth anniversary, while a battery of Congress leaders paid rich tributes.

Congress Women’s Wing chief Sushmita Dev called her an inspiration for women leaders, while senior party leader Haroon Yusuf, who held important portfolios in the government led by Dikshit, said that she was not only a great administrator but a great mentor.

Chhattisgarh health minister TS Singh Deo wrote that Dikshit was a tall leader of the Congress party, whose “contribution in the modernisation and development of Delhi is inspirational”. Other leaders who remembered Dikshit on her birth anniversary include Manickam Tagore, Pawan Khera and Kuljit Nagra.