Malacca Chief Minister Idris Haron has claimed that Dr Mahathir Mohamad wants to contest in the upcoming by-elections in Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar.

The Umno supreme council member said this was based on the former premier's enthusiasm with regard to by-elections, particularly in wanting to see BN defeated.

"It seem as if he is the only qualified candidate to contest in the two parliamentary constituencies.

"That is what I can see and what I can read. It seems he is very interested to become a candidate. Let's wait and see.

"When he said, 'let's work hard to defeat BN', it means he wants to become a candidate," he was quoted as saying by Sinar Harian.

At a "Save Malaysia" rally on May 15, Mahathir had urged the opposition to avoid multi-corner fights in the by-elections in order to defeat BN.

The seats were traditionally contested by PAS and Umno.

However, with PAS no longer part of Pakatan Harapan, the opposition coalition is considering fielding their own candidate.

The by-elections, which come hot on the heels of the Sarawak polls, are seen as a litmus test for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

In the last general election, Umno had captured the seats with small majorities and if defeated in the by-elections, Najib’s critics would claim that it is a rejection of his leadership, which is inundated with allegations of corruption and mismanagement.

The prime minister has denied the allegations, blaming them on Mahathir and those conspiring to topple him from power to further their personal agendas.

The by-elections, which would be held simultaneously on June 18, were called following the deaths of Noriah Kasnon, the former MP for Sungai Besar, and Wan Mohammad Khair-il Anuar Wan Ahmad, who was the Kuala Kangsar MP.

The two were killed along with six others in a helicopter crash during the campaign period for the Sarawak state election.