Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi says the number of his followers on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, has reached 100 million.
India is the world’s most populous country with over 1.4 billion people.
Modi made the announcement Sunday on X, saying, “Happy to be on this vibrant medium.” He also wrote that he will “cherish the discussion, debate, insights, people’s blessings, constructive criticism and more.”
Local media outlets reported that the count is more than double US President Joe Biden’s 38.1 million followers. The reports also said the Indian prime minister became the most followed sitting leader in the world.
Modi, who began his third term after this year’s general election, is known for actively disseminating information through social media. He is posting his activities, policies and reactions to events at home and abroad in English, Hindi and other languages.
Local media say some criticize the Indian leader for rarely holding news conferences that involve question-and-answer sessions. But Modi stresses that there are various types of new communication tools.
In May last year, Modi visited Japan to attend the Group of Seven summit held in Hiroshima. On X, he described the visit as “fruitful” and thanked Japanese people for their warmth.