Modi, Kejriwal are Time's 'most influential people'

In a profile on 63-year-old Modi, the Time has described him as a 'divisive politician poised to lead the world's largest democracy'

Press Trust of India New York
Last Updated : Apr 24 2014 | 11:55 PM IST
Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal are among the world’s 100 most influential people, according to a list published by Time magazine on Thursday.     

Time’s list is without ranking them. There are four Indians on it.

Apart from Modi and Kejriwal, author Arundhati Roy and Coimbatore-based health activist Arunachalam Muruganantham are there.     

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In a profile on 63-year-old Modi, Time has described him as a “divisive politician,  poised to lead the world’s largest democracy”.

“Modi has a reputation for quick action, encouraging the private sector and good governance. He also has a reputation for autocratic rule and a dark Hindu-nationalist streak. But those concerns are waning in a country desperate for change,” Time said of Modi.

The Time annual list  chronicles people “who most influence our world.”

Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, included in a readers’ poll Time had conducted, asking its online readers to vote for who they felt should make it to the list of the 100 most influential people in the world, could not make the final cut.

Listing the 45-year-old Kejriwal, Time described him as a “powerful outsider in Indian politics”, “antithesis of the modern-day Indian politician”. “Though his administration lasted a mere 49 days, with Kejriwal proving less adept at turning the wheels of government than campaigning against it, his image as the quintessential outsider taking on powerful interests — a David versus many mighty Goliaths — has earned him a unique place in Indian politics,” Time said of the AAP leader.

The third Indian on the list is 52-year-old Roy, described by Time as “the novelist who is the conscience of India.”

Muruganantham, Time said is an “unlikely health crusader", who's unique idea to help his wife lead to the invention of a machine that manufactures low-cost sanitary pads. "In a small south Indian town, a man's empathy for his wife has sparked a revolution," Time said describing the moment when Muruganantham asked his wife why she collected dirty clothes and got the reply that she needed them during menstruation. The Time's list also includes US President Barack Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping, singer Beyonce, US Secretary of State John Kerry and his predecessor Hillary Clinton, Pope Francis, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pakistani girls' education activist Malala Yousafzai, whistleblower Edward Snowden and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe among others.
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First Published: Apr 24 2014 | 11:55 PM IST

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