Lok Satta Party President Jayaprakash Narayan on Monday said that India is at the crossroads of history, with an unprecedented opportunity to become the world’s second largest economy at one end and the tremendous danger of becoming a failed State at the other. Paraphrasing novelist Charles Dickens, JP, as popularly known, said, “It is the best of times and it is the worst of times” in India’s history.

Interacting with the media on the eve of the party’s fourth anniversary, JP recalled that India’s share in the world’s GDP has grown to about 2.5 percent since 1991. “If we do the right things, our share in the world’s GDP can go up to 18 percent by 2040, making India the second largest economy in the world, next only to that of China.

He added that for such a miracle to happen “We have to join hands.”

He also said that the corruption and incompetence that marked the organization of Commonwealth games has not merely sullied the country’s reputation but also posed a threat to the continued foreign direct investment and institutional investment and trade relations with other countries. He further added that scandals over allocation of 2G spectrum and mining leases highlight the unprecedented plunder of the State exchequer. “We cannot achieve a high growth rate, eradicate poverty, and maintain ecological balance if people remain passive spectators and allow plunder to go unchecked.”

JP also appealed to sane elements within and outside political parties and civil society organizations to join hands for bringing about fundamental changes in the nature and practice of politics. He said constitution of a strong and independent anti corruption commission to ensure swift and exemplary punishment to the corrupt, a national judicial commission for appointment and removal of judges, and empowerment of local governments and citizens are some of the immediate tasks before the nation.

“Ushering in new politics is everybody’s task. The young and the enlightened of the country should assume leadership in this battle for India’s soul.” The Lok Satta Party, he said, has provided a platform and has been practicing what it preaches.