India locked into low investment cycle, needs liberalised approach: Cong

The Congress on Wednesday claimed that India has been locked into a cycle of low investment since 2014 due to a combination of "erratic policy, rampant cronyism, and the ED/IT/CBI raid raj", and asserted that the country needs a new liberalised approach to political economy.

Ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget next week, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said the single most important statistic that explains India's inability to grow faster since 2014 is the "sluggish investment rate".

"India has been locked into a cycle of low investment since 2014, due to a combination of erratic policy, rampant cronyism, and the ED/IT/CBI raid raj," Ramesh said in a statement.

Low investment drags down the medium and long-term GDP growth rates, which in turn drags down wages and consumption growth, he said.

"The biggest component of investment - private domestic investment - has been in the doldrums since 2014. It was solidly in the 25-30% of GDP rang