New Delhi: In a major development, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday announced that she will not contest the 2019 parliamentary elections.

‘Generally, it is decided by the party but I have made up my mind not to contest Lok Sabha polls,’ Ms Swaraj told a press conference in Indore in presence of other party colleagues in the poll-bound state.

Ms Swaraj is representing Vidisha Parliamentary seat from 2009.

A veteran parliamentarian known for her oratorial skills, 64-year-old leader was also Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha between 2009 and 2014 and was once known for being the ‘blue-eyed girl’ of BJP patriarch L K Advani.

She also held the post the post of Delhi Chief Minister in 1998 and has also handled important portfolios including Health and Information and Broadcasting under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.