Can we take the power list at face value?

It’s ridiculous that a criminal is among the world’s most powerful people. He may be mighty but he has reached there by unethical and corrupt means. To be tagged along with a don is unjust to those who have worked hard and conducted themselves honourably. By such rankings, we are sending a wrong message to the youth and encouraging other criminals to do heinous crime to enter such a ‘powerlist’.
—Ritika Shah

It’s indeed strange to find Dawood Ibrahim’s name on the list. Maybe it’s their criteria of judging personalities, who are powerful and influence people. But we should avoid glorifying gangsters by including them in the list along with Ratan Tata and Manmohan Singh. Inclusion of the don’s name in such lists will increase his clout. He may be powerful, but I am against his inclusion.
—Aslam Merchant

It’s important to know the yardstick on which a don has been given such a high ranking. This will be the magazine’s most controversial decisions so far. This year, there has been debate over Nobel Prize awards as well. Maybe due to the don’s ‘connections’ he has been able to manipulate the media firm into giving him the rating. I fail to understand what message they are sending out worldwide by including the most wanted man who is escaping justice and is wanted in the 1993 Mumbai blasts?
—Zeeshan Sheikh

It’s surprising that those who wield influence by terror and dread are placed over other eminent personalities in the powerlist by the magazine, this year. It’s unjust to leaders like Lakshmi Mittal, Steve Jobs and Ratan Tata, who have done a great deal in their field. This list will receive a lot of flak, but they must be having their reasons to include them. But we shouldn’t be churlish and make a big issue of the same.
—Amar Sanghvi

The definition of power seems to have altered with times. Today power is equated with fear. Dawood Ibrahim and Osama bin Laden are powerful but so are many other gangsters. It’s an insult to many others who have struggled to achieve and brought fame to the country. The magazine must have a new list and they must rate people with dubious antecedents on a different scale.
—Nishita Shah