Arvind Kejriwal beats Modi
 in Time readers’ poll

Kejriwal, 45, received a total of 261,114 “yes” votes from readers, while Narendra Modi got 164,572 approving votes.

Results of the staggered Indian elections may not be known for over three weeks and could be a forgone conclusion given the latest opnion polls. But Aam Aadmi Party founder Arvind Kejriwal has pulled off a coup by winning Time magazine’s readers poll of 100 Most Influential People in the world with the highest percentage of “yes” votes.

Kejriwal, 45, received a total of 261,114 “yes” votes from readers, while Narendra Modi, the controversial leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party and frontrunner to become India’s next prime minister, came second with 164,572 approving votes, the magazine said.

Time said icons such as Malala Yousafzai, Katy Perry, Justin Bieber and Rihanna ranked high as reader favourites, but the poll turned into a competition between the two Indian politicians.

Modi, 63, had a greater percentage of “no” votes than any other influential personalities in the running, beating out both Perry and Justin Bieber for naysayers. Modi has received 49.7 “yes” and 50.3 per cent “no” votes. The mgazine said over 3.2 million votes were cast in the poll. There were attempts to inflate the voting numbers, but only legitimate votes were tabulated for the final results, it said.

Congress party vice-president Rahul Gandhi, with about 37,000 reactions, ranked much lower on the list. Rounding out the top ten finishers after Kejriwal and Modi were singer Katy Perry, singer Justin Bieber, actor Laverne Cox, actor Benedict Cumberbatch, singer Beyoncé, actor Jared Leto, actor Lupita Nyong’o, singer Lady Gaga and music duo Daft Punk.

news@khaleejtimes.com