As battle lines are drawn, Incumbent Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin's challenger sought to paint the foreign-educated leader as detached and an outsider, slyly comparing him to a Bangladeshi national.

Though Syed Rosli Syed Harman did not name Khairy, he made specific references to his background.

"He is like a Bangladeshi (who came here). At age 20 he came to Malaysia and wants to talk about the Malays' struggle. What is he struggling for?

NONE"He did not even go to school in Malaysia," Syed Rosli (left) told journalists after the youth wing's nomination process this morning.

In his younger days, Khairy had moved across the globe as his parents were top diplomats.

He was born in Kuwait, received his secondary education in Singapore and tertiary education at Oxford in Britain.

Locally bred is the best

"To understand our race's struggle, basically we need to experience it by ourselves.

"If we have never grown up and schooled in Malaysia, how are we to understand the struggles of the Malays, religion, race and country?" said Syed Rosli who is Taman Chempaka Umno Youth branch assistant secretary.

Syed Ali stole the limelight when he swore on Allah's name that he would not be involved in corruption after handing over his nomination forms.

Khairy will be defending his position but Syed Rosli is one of two confirmed candidates who are out to unhorse the leader.

The other is Bendang Baru Umno Youth chief Akhramsyah Muammar Ubaidah Sanusi.

A third candidate who is speculated to join the fray, Merbok Umno division Youth chief Karim Ali, had yet to submit his nomination papers at the time of writing this report.

In an immediate response on Twitter later today, Khairy describe the attack as “gutter politics”.

“First day of Umno election, I get called ‘Bangla’.

“There is no need for me to respond. I do not play ‘gutter’ politics. It is shameful to the rakyat,” he said.