The Pakatan Harapan chairman alleged that BN may resort to planned riots so that a state of emergency can be called.

“I’m worried that this is a sign of future violence,” he said, referring to the disturbance at the forum.

“I hope not, I hope we will have a well-handled election.

“But we have to be prepared, because we do not want to see our country in chaos,” Mahathir said in a video uploaded on PPBM’s Facebook page this evening.

The chaos at the Dewan Raja Muda Musa in Shah Alam began when lit flares with a pungent chemical odour were hurled in Mahathir’s direction, filling the hall with smoke.

Chairs were reportedly thrown as punching matches were said to have erupted among those present as PPBM members rushed onto the stage to protect the 92-year-old.

Mahathir said he didn’t know if the troublemakers were members of Umno, but added that he was sure they were supporters of the current administration.

“They appeared to have wanted to save Najib. I don’t know if they are Umno members, but that is a possibility,” he said in the four-and-a-half-minute video, referring to Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Shah Alam district police chief Shafien Mamat said on Sunday that three suspects, aged 17 to 19, had been detained by the police to assist in their investigation, and that two were students at a local private college.

Reports yesterday said that the three teenagers were allegedly paid RM50 each to attend the forum.

They were remanded by the Shah Alam Magistrate’s Court yesterday for four days to facilitate investigations.