Pakatan Harapan chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the opposition coalition will seek a meeting with outgoing Bersih chief Maria Chin Abdullah on her plans for the 14th general election.

"We will meet her, but we have yet to make any decision," he told a press conference at the Opposition Leader's office in Parliament, after chairing the Harapan presidential council meeting today.

Mahathir was responding to Maria's resignation as Bersih chief today in a bid to enter politics.

Maria said she planned to contest as an independent candidate, but is looking to run under the Harapan banner.

However, she has no intention of joining any of the coalition’s four component parties, stating instead that she wants to represent the interests of civil society in Parliament.

Mahathir (photo) said Harapan will sort the matter out with her to avoid the possibility of multi-cornered fights.

"We need to look at the impact, because we do not want to see three or four-cornered fights. This would only benefit BN," he said.

In an interview with Malaysiakini, Maria admitted that the decision to join politics and offer herself as a candidate to Harapan did not come easy, due to Mahathir leading the coalition.

Maria's late husband, Yunus Lebai Ali, was detained without trial under Operasi Lalang during Mahathir's tenure as prime minister in 1987.

"It was not easy to reconcile, as he (Mahathir) was the one who signed the detention order," she said.

Maria admitted, however, that by taking a Harapan-friendly position, she would need to accept the coalition's leadership.

"But I will hold them to their manifesto.

"If they step out of line, then, of course, I will raise my concerns. So it will be based on principles rather than on the individual," she said.