Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin may have been reduced to an outcast at the party's annual general assembly this week but he received a hero's welcome at a dinner function last night hosted by Kedah Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir.

Speaking at a dinner function where some 1,000 Umno supporters chanted " Hidup Tan Sri " (Long Live Tan Sri) at the sight of Muhyiddin, Mukhriz said it was wrong of the Umno supreme council to silence the leader.

"I think it was the wrong decision, that is to our detriment," he told the crowd at a restaurant in Kuala Lumpur.

Earlier, Mukhriz joked that it was strange he could announce Muhyiddin's presence at the dinner, noting that there was a function where Muhyiddin's name could not even be mentioned, in apparent reference to the Umno annual general assembly.

Muhyiddin was in July removed from Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s Cabinet for being critical of his No1 and has since been sidelined by the party.

He has been barred from delivering a winding-up speech at the Umno annual general assembly tomorrow, a move that breaks decades-long party tradition.

Mukhriz noted that there were risks in their gathering, as people may accuse them of having bad intentions but said they were merely there to pray for the country and the future.

"I have to admit, as Kedah Umno chairperson, I am also taking risks. But I do not care for positions.

"If people want to make noise, go ahead. Because this is our right (to gather).

"If we do not have the right to gather and voice out, then I fear for Umno's future," he said, adding that he hoped the gathering will not be viewed as breaching party discipline.

'Sacrifice for Umno to emerge stronger'

Mukhriz then took a subtle swipe at the government's repetitive but standard explanation about the RM2.6 billion in Najib's personal bank accounts.

Noting that he had to be careful when airing his views, Mukhriz did not make specific reference to the donation but used himself as example.

"If people ask what is my name, I would answer 'I'm from Kedah'. When asked again, (the answer is still) 'I'm from Kedah'.

"That person might think I don't understand. So that is the issue - a question is asked but the answer is not for the question.

"The same questions are being asked but the answer given is not for the question," he said.

Mukhriz urged the crowd to keep up the pressure, describing all of them as a mere drop in the ocean but together, they can become a tsunami.

He added if they are willing to make sacrifices, Umno will re-emerge as a strong party.

"If we are unwilling (to sacrifice), then you can imagine what will happen in the next general election," he said.

At the function was former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad and wife Dr Siti Hasmah and Umno vice-president Shafie Apdal.

Also present were the Gerakan Ketua Cawangan Malaysia, a coalition of Umno branch leaders who have rebelled against Najib.