Hinting that the mantra of his new party will be development, former Shiv Sena leader Raj Thackeray on Wednesday said he will announce his party at a rally in Mumbai's Shivaji Park soon.
"One thing is very clear. I am not going to return [to the Shiv Sena]. I am therefore going to form a new party. The formation of my political outfit will be announced at a rally to be held at Mumbai's Shivaji Park soon," Thackeray said at a public meeting in Pune.
Thackeray said it is only development that will matter for the common man.
"What is the point in sticking to cultural issues when development is at stake. Look at Malaysia, a Muslim majority country, how much progress it has made. It is only development that will ensure one gets one square meal a day," he said.
"I hold no post and have no power. Yet wherever I went in Maharashtra to assess the real feelings of the people, I got lots of affection from everyone," Thackeray said.
"This indicates that the people really are desperate for a party that thought differently and was focused towards the development of the young generation," he said.
He also alleged that the Marathwada and Vidarbha areas of Maharashtra have remained backward despite five chief ministers hailing from these two regions.
"There is not a single sign of development in these two regions. The state may have not developed but the leaders have," Thackeray said.