#9 – Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India

Narendra Damodardas Modi (born in 1950) is the 14th Prime Minister of India and has been in office since May 2014. He was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014, and is the Member of Parliament for Varanasi. Modi, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is a Hindu nationalist and member of the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Modi’s right-wing administration has attempted to improve efficiency in the bureaucracy and raised foreign investment in the Indian economy, increased spending on infrastructure and reduced spending on healthcare and social welfare programmes. He recently began a high-profile sanitation campaign, at the same time weakening environmental and labour laws. Despite dividing opinions at home and around the world, he holds a cult-like status in India and is the most followed Asian leader on Twitter.