Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, ranks 15th in the Forbes list of world’s most powerful people.
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has made it to rank 15 of the Forbes list of world’s most powerful people in his short stint at the country’s helm of affairs. The list names 72 globally influential people, with Russian president Vladimir Putin on top, followed by US president Barack Obama and Chinese president Xi Jinping on second and third spot, respectively.
Forbes described Modi as “India’s newest rock star doesn’t hail from Bollywood. He is the newly elected Prime Minister who sailed into office in May with a landslide victory, ushering the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) into power after decades of control by the Gandhi dynasty.”
Other Indians on the list also include Reliance Industries Chirman Mukesh Ambani (rank 36) ArcelorMittal Chairman and CEO Lakshmi Mittal (rank 57) and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (rank 64). This year, however, Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi off the list; she was the highest ranked Indian last year at 21.
This year Forbes has included 12 newcomers on the list apart from Modi–Egypt President Abdel el-Sisi, Alibiba founder and China’s richest man Jack Ma, as well as terror group Islamic State’s chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Putin toppled Obama from first place in 2013, before which the latter had consistently peaked the list since his ascension to presidency, except for 2010. The top five remain the same as 2013, with Jinping ranked third, Pope Francis at fourth and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at fifth rank.
Photo Credits: economictimes.com
