Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal condoled the sudden demise of his predecessor Sheila Dikshit and said her contribution will always be remembered.
"The news of sudden demise of Sheila Dikshit ji has shocked me. Only last month I had met her for nearly an hour when she came with her party's delegation to submit a memorandum on several issues, at the end of the meeting I wished her good health, not knowing that this would be my last meeting with her," said Kejriwal.
"Though we were political rivals and our views were opposite on many issues, I found Dikshit to be warm and an affectionate person whenever we met," said Kejriwal.
"I came to know about Dikshit's health concerns last year, when she had written to the Delhi government about her surgery requirements abroad, which was successful, but I could never imagine that she would leave us so soon," Kejriwal added.
"People of Delhi will always remember the contribution of late Sheila Dikshit ji and the void left by her can never be filled. She understood the issues concerning Delhi very well," said Kejriwal.
"The sudden passing away of Sheila Dikshit ji is a huge loss for Delhi and I express my heart felt condolences to her family members. May her soul rest in peace," Kejirwal said.
In view of Dikshit's demise, Kejriwal and his deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia cancelled their scheduled trip to Vaishno Devi Temple in Jammu and Kashmir. Sisodia also said that Delhi government has decided to declare two-day state mourning over the demise of Dikshit.
"The news of the demise of former chief minister of Delhi, Mrs. Sheila Dikshit, is very sad. May God give peace to her soul, and give the family the strength to bear this loss," Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia said on Twitter.
AAP leader Kumar Vishwas thanked Dikshit for a golden lesson of politics that she imparted to him on a Delhi-Lucknow flight.
DCW chief Swati Maliwal offered condolences to Dikshit's friends and family members. "Just learnt about the demise of Delhi's ex-chief minister Sheila Dikshit ji. May her soul always rest in peace."