The Johor palace has issued a ban on words referring to the state palace in support letters.

The ban came after rampant name-dropping of the royalty's name in business and social activities, New Straits Times says in a report today.

Among the words banned are “DiRaja”, “Tuanku”, “Tunku”, “Johor”, “Sultan”, “Mahkota” and “Istana”.

According to the report, former Johor state secretary Obet Tawil confirmed a letter was issued on Oct 8 last year to Johor and federal departments, statutory bodies, local authorities, the Registrar of Societies, state cooperatives and company commissions on the matter.

'Refer use of such words use to Johor'

They were instructed to look out for words linking to the Johor royal institution in documents they receive and to refer these to the state government.

The letter was issued after Johor Sultan Ibrahim Ismail expressed unhappiness at the abuse of the Johor royalty's name.

“Without the people, there is no sultan. So, I took the initiative to ensure that no one abuses the Johor palace’s influence and that my family’s name is not exploited.” the sultan is reported to have said, admitting that such abuse is rampant in the country.

The Johor ruler's remarks came amid reports that recommendation letters linked to the Pahang palace have often been used to pressure local authorities in Cameron Highlands.

The authorities in Cameron Highlands have pointed to such documents as the cause for over-development at the highlands, which resulted in massive mudslides on Nov 6, killing five people.