PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the removal of committee members was a normal practice and allowed the appointment of other members who were equally suitable for the roles.

Khairuddin had recently said his removal from the Central Committee, two months after his reappointment, was due to his insistence that PAS stick with Umno under the Muafakat Nasional partnership.

Tuan Ibrahim said Khairuddin was initially co-opted after party president Abdul Hadi Awang proposed his name.

He told Utusan Malaysia that Khairuddin, who was former plantation industries and commodities minister, was subsequently dropped after Hadi changed his mind.

Last November, Khairuddin and Nik Mohamad Abduh Nik Aziz lost in the party polls, falling short of a 609-vote threshold required to be part of the 18-member PAS Central Committee.

Commenting on his removal from the committee yesterday, Khairuddin said observers should “read between the lines” and hinted that it may have to do with his insistence that PAS pursue its ties with Umno in MN to preserve Muslim unity.

However, Khairuddin said he still remained the secretary of PAS’ Syura Council.

Other members of the council are Hadi and Tuan Ibrahim.