MUMBAI: CNN-IBN has announced the list of nominees for three of the six categories of CNN-IBN Indian of the Year Award. Six personalities belonging to the disciplines of sports, business and politics have been short-listed by the judiciary council in concurrence with the TV 18 editorial group.
The nominees for the Politics category are:
- West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya.
- Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi.
- Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar.
- Railway minister Laloo Yadav.
- Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh.
- Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi.
The nominees for the Business category:
- Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata.
- Suzlon head Tulsi Tanti.
- Reliance Industries Limited chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani.
- Bharat Forge chairman and managing director Baba Kalyani.
- Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd managing director Anand Mahindra.
- Air Deccan managing director Captain GR Gopinath.
The nominees for the Sports category are:
- Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh.
- Indian shooter Jaspal Rana.
- Tennis player Leander Paes.
- Badminton player Saina Nehwal.
- Cricketer Anil Kumble.
- Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Rajdeep Sardesai editor-in-chief CNN-IBN and IBN7 said, "With the generation of the nominee list for the Politics, Business and Sports categories we have taken our first step in short-listing all those that have made India proud in 2006. These candidates have been chosen based on the noteworthy contributions they have made in their respective fields."
CNN-IBN and IBN 7 national sales head Sanjay Dua added, "The CNN-IBN Indian of the Year is a property that is bound to be appealing and profitable to all advertisers alike. I am confident that such a prestigious title is something they will take pride in being associated with as it recognises and celebrates achievements of eminent Indians across various spheres."
The above nominees, along with those of the other three categories ie. entertainment, public service and NRI will shortly be open for voting by the public and the electoral college. This will then determine the Indian of the Year for each category.
