Congress president Sonia Gandhi figures in the list of women of the year 2004 brought out by The Guardian daily.
She is only next to US National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice in the list.
"That Sonia Gandhi won the Indian general election was surprising enough. That she turned down the post of the prime minister was simply flabbergasting," the daily said.
Possibly, she was the first recorded example of 'a politician with humility', it said.
The list also included British politicians, sports personalities and comediennes.
Kelly Holmes, winner of double gold medal at the Athens Olympics, is among the powerful women of the year. Margaret Hassan, the British national taken hostage in Iraq and believed to be brutally murdered, The UK Trade Secretary Patricia Hewitt and singer Jamelia also figure in the list.