At the same time, she was intensely feminine, loved buying and wearing smartclothes, had the best head of hair in British politics and spent a fortune keeping it well dressed.
Neat stacks of medical text books, a sharply-designed carrier bag from a clothes store, an English novel and pairs of smart shoes in the draughty bedroom of the 23-year-old Delhi gang rape victim, tell the story of a woman determined to make the leap to a middle class lifestyle for her and her family.