Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today fueled speculations that Umno would sack its past president Dr Mahathir Mohamad when he refrained from denying it outright.

When asked by malaysiakini if action would be taken against his former boss, the prime minister - who was attending a Barisan Nasional (BN) supreme council meet in Kuala Lumpur - attempted to dodge the question.

Abdullah, who is also Umno president, argued that it was not the right place to comment on party matters.

"This is not an Umno meeting so I have nothing to say about Umno," he said.

And when prodded, he replied: "I don't make any statements before Umno meets."

While Abdullah declined to elaborate on his remarks, observers wondered if his reluctance to deny the issue indicated that something was indeed brewing in Umno.

However, certain quarters believed that the speculation of an expulsion was far-fetched.

"Sacking Mahathir would be too drastic a measure. He is after all a much respected leader and Abdullah would not want to risk causing a split in the party.

"However, Mahathir could be reprimanded for his outburst," said an observer, who declined to be named.

The possibility of the former Umno president being shown the exit was raised by opposition party PAS on Wednesday.

Its vice-president, Husam Musa, claimed to have got wind that a motion to sack Mahathir would be moved at the Umno supreme council meeting scheduled for Monday.

Should the unthinkable happened, it would not be the first time Mahathir faces expulsion from the party. In the wake of the 1969 riots, Mahathir was sacked by Umno after he severely criticised then prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman.

Scathing attacks

Over the recent months, Mahathir had become a major thorn for the current administration.

The former premier had fired a volley of criticism against his successor over the decision to scrap the half-bridge project, the management of Proton and the discrepancies in the issuance of Approved Permits.

While claiming that it was nothing personal, Mahathir, had on one occasion, even wondered aloud if he had chosen the 'wrong person' to replace him.

The former premier's outburst was criticised by other leaders who also pointed out that it was in breach of Umno tradition.

Despite the scathing criticisms, Abdullah had been lauded for keeping his cool and refraining from engaging in a slugfest with his former boss.

On Monday, the premier said the relevant ministries would answer the questions raised by Mahathir.

Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak had warned BN members that while they were free to criticise, they were also bound by party discipline.