BANGALORE: "India will be respected if its secular, global and modern." "The one quality I look [in political leaders] is 'courage'. Courage to dream big, stand for values and do things seemingly impossible."

The preceding quotes are not from any clear sighted statesman but from NR Narayana Murthy, chief mentor of Infy.

Looks like Murthy is priming up for a role amongst nation-builders. Rumours abound that he is likely to step down from the Infy board and take up full time political assignment.

One source said he is tipped to be the ambassador to one of the key western countries. In the past people have asked, "Is Presidentship Murthy's next stop."

Contours of Narayana Murthy's career in nation-building became manifest during the inauguration of Nasscom 2003 in Mumbai. Murthy was interviewed by the high commissioner of Canada to India, Peter H Sutherland and Kiran Karnik for the benefit of about 800 CIOs and business leaders.

Murthy's came across as an astute political thought leader. He talked effortlessly on various subjects taking on a fatherly tone to budding enterpreneurs, family owned businesses and middle and top-level managers present there.

His messages to a nation was more direct. "India should reach a level where every child has enough to eat, proper healthcare, a roof on head and has access to education."

When Ernst & Young bestowed upon Murthy one of the world's most prestigious awards, The E&Y Annual Enterpreneurship Award, perhaps it did not realize that it has actually chosen a corporate leader who is tipped to don the roles of a statesman.

"India should reach a level where every child has enough to eat, proper healthcare, a roof on head and has access to education," Murhty had said showing uncanny ability to reach out to the grassroots.

Is it time the chief mentor of Infosys Technologies turned mentor to the nation. If he takes the plunge look for what's in store through his own words, " An ideal political leader will understand the true India as being made of two Indias, one urban India and the other a rural India.

The urban India represents wealth and the rural India represents poverty. The political leader must help strengthen the industrializable India, the urban India, to create jobs and opportunities that will spill over to the rural India."