Temerloh MP Nasrudin Hassan, one of PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang's top lieutenants, has been widely speculated to be jettisoning his constituency for a safer seat.

Sources who are familiar with the situation in Temerloh said talk of Nasrudin's planned departure has been rife following his lack of public appearances in the area.

A more likely reason to seek greener pastures, however, was that PAS' chances of retaining Temerloh are very slim due to the change of political allegiances since 2013.

In 2013, Nasrudin was elected as PAS' first MP in Pahang in over a decade by a thin margin of just 1,070 votes or a 1.8 percent majority.

Now that PAS has broken ties with PKR and DAP, they are unlikely to be able to retain the sizeable number of non-Malay voters who backed Nasrudin in the past.

To PAS, Nasrudin is a big deal. He rose quickly from PAS Youth chief to joining the syura council - the party's highest decision-making body.

Even though he lost his bid for the PAS vice-presidency last year, he was quickly reappointed as the information chief, making him a key official and party spokesperson.

Kelantan or Terengganu bound?

Kuala Semantan assemblyperson Syed Hamid Syed Mohamed, who left PAS to join Amanah, believed that Nasrudin was now a "liability" for Pahang PAS because his local presence was not felt.

"It is unlikely for him to defend his seat. He has not been serving the people. It is likely he will move somewhere else," said Syed Hamid.

The Kuala Semantan state constituency is part of the Temerloh parliamentary constituency.

Saifuddin Abdullah, the incumbent Temerloh MP who Nasrudin defeated in 2013, speculated that Nasrudin will likely "seek asylum" in territories where PAS has a stronger influence, such as Kelantan or Hadi's home state of Terengganu.

"He can't get enough non-Malay support due to PAS' and his positions on certain issues.

"There are also rumblings among the Malays regarding his sparse appearances in Temerloh. Even if he is around, it is mostly for ceramah engagements," said Saifuddin (photo), who left Umno for PKR in 2015.

Medical leave

When contacted, Nasrudin brushed aside the criticisms, and explained that his lack of fieldwork in Temerloh was attributable to his recent injury.

"In the last session of Parliament, my ligament was injured and I had to rest for over a month. It is not true that I'm missing from Temerloh. I go there often," he said.

He declined to confirm whether he would be defending his seat because that was a decision that will be made by the party.

"As far as the party is concerned, PAS will defend Temerloh. As to who will be fielded, that is a question for the party leadership. I am 100 percent at PAS' disposal.

"It was not me that contested, it was the party. An individual is only the representative of the party (in elections). It is the party that contests.

"If PAS is scared, it won't contest. PAS will defend the seat," said the 47-year-old Terengganu-born politician and religious scholar who grew up in Pahang.

Likely replacements

Should Nasrudin be shipped elsewhere, Malaysiakini understands that the frontrunner replacement will likely be Temerloh PAS division chief Yusof Darus.

The likely challenger from Pakatan Harapan could be Syed Hamid, as his party Amanah had been given the task to field a candidate there.

As for BN, there was speculation that Temerloh Umno division chief Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin (photo), a known loyalist to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, will be their candidate.

Mohd Sharkar is now in his fourth term as the Lancang assemblyperson and is part of the state cabinet. He is also an Umno supreme council member and Pahang Umno deputy head.

Last year, Sharkar described Najib as a "transparent" leader with regards to the RM2.6 billion deposited in the prime minister's personal bank accounts.

Regardless of the permutations and possible candidates, the battle for Temerloh, the second biggest urban centre in Pahang after Kuantan, will likely shape up as one of the most keenly contested battles come GE14.