PAS has denied that Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Satar, who has declared his intention to contest in the Bukit Gelugor by-election, is a member of the Islamist party.

PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar said investigations have revealed the self-proclaimed PAS member is in fact an Umno member.

"His claim to be a PAS member is a lie and our search showed he is actually an Umno member," Mahfuz was quoted saying in Harakah Daily .

The party's mouthpiece also reported that PAS will take legal action against Mohamed Nabi (left, holding certificate) for claiming he is a PAS member and secretary of the Kumpung Banjar PAS division.

“We are seeking legal advise on action to be taken on the false declaration which have affected PAS' image,” Mahfuz said, adding that what Nabi has done is a crime.  

According to Harakah Daily , Nabi's Umno membership number is 2700360 and he belongs to the Kampung Banjar Umno division.

Nabi on Friday claimed he is a PAS member and declared his intention to contest the Bukit Gelugor seat, which fell vacant upon the death of DAP veteran Karpal Singh.

His announcement, which came after Parti Cinta Malaysia vice president Huan Cheng Guan declared his candidacy, had caught local Penang PAS by surprise.

DAP yesterday announced that its candidate for the seat is Karpal's son Ramkarpal Singh ( above ), while PAS reiterated that it will back the DAP candidate for the May 25 polls.

Karpal, who died in a road accident last month, won the seat in the 2013 general election with a large majority of 44,778 votes against MCA's Teh Beng Yeam.

MCA is sitting out the polls, saying it prefers to concentrate on its campaign against the implementation of hudud.