The last decade has seen social media take the center-stage in our lives. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram are the ones standing out in otherwise complex and widespread social media market.
And it's not just us!
The world leaders have been actively using social media to convey their messages bypassing the mainstream media altogether. From US Prez Donald Trump announcing his policy decisions to Pakistan PM Imran Khan giving public advice to the captain of his cricket team ahead of a world cup match against India, social media is increasingly becoming the one stop solution to 'Know-it-all'.
This increase in use of social media can also be seen in the top tier of Indian leadership.
Here is the list of the 10 most followed Indian politicians on Twitter.
- PM Narendra Modi- The Prime Minister of India is the second most followed world leader only behind former USA president Barrack Obama. Narendra Modi has 48.2 million twitter followers which makes him easily the most followed political leader in India. PM Modi has used social media to his advantage during his term in office. He has been proactive on twitter throughout his first term in office. More of this can be expected in his second term which began on May 23.
- Arvind Kejriwal- Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is on number 2 with 15.1 million Twitter followers. Former IAS officer, Kejriwal is the founder of the Aam Aadmi Party which swept the Delhi state assembly elections in 2015. Kejriwal was also instrumental to Anna Hazare's Lokpal agitation.
- Arun Jaitley- Former Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley comes in at third with 15 million Twitter followers. He was known to be one of the closest aids to Prime Minister Modi in his first term in office. Jaitley was instrumental in policies which resulted in decisions like Demonitising and GST. He decided to stay away from office in Modi's second term citing health concerns.
- Amit Shah- Modi's second in command, Amit Shah has been instrumental in BJP's success in the last 5 years. He has been known as the brain behind BJP during his time as the party national President. Amit Shah has 14 million twitter followers. After his appointment as the Home Minister in the Modi government 2.0, Shah can be expected to use his twitter more proactively in times to come.
- Rajnath Singh- Home Minister in Modi's first stint and the current Defence Minister of India, Rajnath Singh has 13.3 million Twitter followers. Rajnath has been Modi's go to man in many situations including the times when the Jammu and Kashmir situation deteriorated. Rajnath visited the valley many times in the last 5 years in his attempts to improve situation in J&K.
- Rahul Gandhi- Congress party president Rahul Gandhi comes in next with 9.8 million Twitter followers. Rahul has been vocal on social media criticising the policies of the ruling party. After his party's loss in the Lok Sabha elections 2019, Rahul offered to resign from the post of the party president. However, nothing much has transpired of it as yet.
- Smriti Irani- The new giant killer of the Indian politics, Irani defeated Rahul Gandhi from Congress bastion of Amethi. Smriti Irani has 9.4 million Twitter followers. She is the Women and Child Development Minister in the Modi Sarkar 2.0.
- Shashi Tharoor- Congress leader from the state of Kerala comes in at 8th spot with 6.9 million Twitter followers. Shashi Tharoor is an established diplomat and has spent years in the United Nations.
- Piyush Goyal- Piyush goyal proved to be a useful tool for PM Modi when he stepped in for Arun Jaitley as the Finance Minister when Jaitley was not present due to health issues. Piyush Goyal has 5.7 million Twitter followers. He is also the Railways Minister of India.
- Nitin Gadkari- Last and the least (atleast considering numbers), Nitin Gadkari has 5.1 million Twitter followers. Even after four years, Nitin Gadkari remains the most efficient minister of the Narendra Modi cabinet, responsible for roadways and highways he has been responsible for some of the best work done by Modi government in the last 5 years.
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