Lok Sabha elections 2019: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday said she has decided not to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. She reportedly cited health reasons behind her decision. Swaraj said that although it is the party that takes decisions on such things, on her part, she has made up her mind not to contest the 2019 general elections. The senior BJP leader told reporters in Indore today. "It is the party which decides, but I have made up my mind not to contest the next (Lok Sabha) elections," the Vidisha MP said. The 66-year-old Sushma Swaraj, who underwent a kidney transplant in 2016, said she had conveyed her decision to the party.

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Who is Sushma Swaraj

Swaraj, who is a senior BJP leader, was born on 14 February 1952 at Ambala Cantt in Haryana. She has been serving as the Minister of External Affairs since May 2014. Also, she is the second woman to hold the office after Indira Gandhi.

She has been a Member of Parliament for several years. In the past, she has also held the position of Delhi's Chief Minister from October 13 to December 3, 1998. In fact, she was Delhi's first woman chief minister.

She has also been Informational and Broadcasting Minister in the Centre, spokesperson of the and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. During the last two Lok Sabha polls in 2009 and 2014, Swaraj had contested and won from Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh.