Keadilan vice-president Azmin Ali will find no support among the party's grassroots leaders in Kedah, over his dissatisfaction with the seat distribution arrangements between the party and PAS for the general election.

Keadilan Kedah's election bureau secretary Zamri Yusof said the deal had been sealed after much deliberation and hard work, and that members in the state have backed the arrangements made.

Details of the memorandum of understanding (MOU), signed last week, will be announced on Wednesday in Kota Sarang Semut.

Zamri said the party supreme council had assigned state leaders to negotiate with PAS over seat distribution, and had jurisdiction to make decisions in relation to their own constituencies.

"PAS was willing to talk...and we have come to an amicable solution," he said.

Last Friday, Azmin - the party's election campaign director and Hulu Kelang state assembly representative - had said Keadilan may be 'victimised' again by being handed "unwinnable" seats or in areas where DAP has set its sights.

Seats cited included Kubang Rotan, Derga, Kulim, Bukit Selambau, Sidam, Batu Arang, Gurun and Kota Darul Aman.

He also said the agreement may not automatically be endorsed by the supreme council or presidential council, and called for re-negotiation.

'Leave Kedah alone'

Keadilan Kedah Information chief Hafiz Mustafa said state leaders were disappointed with Azmin's remarks, which came after the negotiations were completed.

Hafiz said Azmin should concentrate on Keadilan's front line states - Penang , Perak , Selangor and Pahang - where the issue of seat allocation with DAP remains unresolved.

"Azmin should leave Kedah alone - this is a PAS front line state together with Kelantan, Terengganu and Perlis," he said.

"PAS did not interfere with, or make unreasonable demands over, our front line states. Kedah is not our front line state, so PAS should have more say in it."

Kedah - the home state of former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad - is tipped to fall under opposition control in the forthcoming general election, due by November but widely speculated to be called earlier.

In the 1999 general election, Barisan Nasional (BN) lost eight of the 15 parliamentary seats and 13 of the 36 state seats to opposition parties which did not include Keadilan.

The party did, however, wrest Lunas from BN in a November 2000 by-election, but with help from PAS.

It is learnt that, in the forthcoming elections, PAS will contest in 11 parliamentary and 27 state seats in Kedah, while Keadilan will take on 5 parliamentary and 9 state seats.