Arvind Kejriwal, the national convenor of Aam Aadmi Party which performed impressively in the recently concluded Delhi assembly polls, has been named by Foreign Policy magazine as one of its 100 Leading Global Thinkers of 2013.
The fifth annual list in the special issue published before the assembly election notes that Kejriwal is out to ignite a revolution and that Kejriwal is leading an influential campaign to rid New Delhi of corruption and refocus government attention on the needs of citizens.
“India's elite have good reason to be worried about Kejriwal: The country was rocked by a series of anti-corruption protests just two years ago, and in a poll released in July this year, 71 percent of respondents said corruption is getting worse,” FP said.
“Unsurprisingly, several high-profile politicians have filed lawsuits against Kejriwal, and he also claims that state intelligence services are snooping on his private communications”.
Kejriwal was featured under the section ‘Challengers”
Two other Indians -- Urvashi Butalia and Kavita Krishnan -- have also been featured by FP under the section ‘Advocates.
“Butalia and Krishnan aren't just thoughtful activists: They are formidable, front-line opponents in the battle against India's scourge of sexual violence,” FP said.
Krishnan is a leftist activist and secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association, while Butalia is the founder of India's first feminist publishing house and a longtime women's rights activist.
Both of them criticized calls for capital punishment at the expense of much-needed social discussions about where sexual violence occurs.
Each winter, Foreign Policy recognises the world’s preeminent thought leaders in a special issue featuring the year’s top 100 ‘Global Thinkers.’ The widely cited list, an annual tradition that has become one of the most read features in the magazine, offers a wide range of thinkers and visionaries, leaders and activists, from around the globe.
