Since Mahatma Gandhi in 1930, an Indian has never been selected as the TIME Person of the Year.

Narendra Modi didn’t make the shortlist of the people Time selected, but the magazine’s readers thought differently.In the roundup of votes for the Reader Poll, TIME Person of the Year, Modi received over 16% of almost 5 million votes cast. He even beat the Ferguson protesters, Hong Kong protest leader Joshua Wong, Nobel Peace Prize-winner Malala Yousafzai and the people treating Ebola.
Since Mahatma Gandhi in 1930, an Indian has never been selected as the TIME Person of the Year. Modi made it to the list of top 50 contenders selected by the magazine, and was the only Indian to do so.
Modi has also made it to the cover in the past.