Weekly makes Vajpayee lead `Dream cabinet’

Vajpayee is among the four Indians who figure on the list. Other Indians on the “Power-50” list are information technology giants Azim Premji of Wipro and and N R Narayanamurthy of Infosys and industrialist Dhirubhai Ambani.

The survey conducted by the Hongkong-based magazine saw Vajpayee emerging as number nine. In the dream cabinet, Vajpayee’s deputy is China’s premier of the state council, Zhu Rongji, who will also hold the Finance portfolio.

Vajpayee’s adroitness in “diplomatic humbling” of Pakistan has stood out as his power point. Quoting President Bill Clinton that he was drawing the curtain on his country’s special relationship with Cold War ally Pakistan and tilting towards democratic India, it said the geo-political swing came on the heels of the successful neutralising of a Pakistan-backed invasion of the disputed Kashmir. Equally significant was the taming of hardliners in his coalition government and the routing of the Congress party in a general election.

With all these achievements, the Indian Prime Minister seems more firmly established than ever, a situation clouded only by his medical condition. He has only one kidney and his health is thought to be not so good, the article said.

Some of the other members of the dream cabinet are Malaysian leader Mahathir Mohammad (interior minister), South Korean leader Kim Dae Jung (foreign minister) and businessman Li Kasing (trade and industry minister) and Idei Nobuyoki (science and technology).

Leading Hongkong businessman Li Ka-Shing occupies the top place in the survey of powerful men. Chinese President Jiang Zemin, who is also the general secretary of the Communist Party, occupies the second place. Japanese industrialist Idei Nobuyuki, who is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sony Corporation, is placed next in the list.