The purported move is based on the removal of a five-year ban on elected representatives running again if they resign to force by-elections.

Political scientist Wong Chin Huat said the purported move was too risky under the circumstances and was unlikely to happen before the state elections.

“But it could happen if Umno gets wiped out in the Pakatan Harapan states of Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan. The MPs may then vacate their seats and stand under other Malay-based parties. So, the unity government is not threatened before the state elections.”

Wong said the removal of the five-year ban was not a mistake. He contends that Pakatan Harapan was not trapped as claimed by many people.

“The anti-hopping law is to return the mandate to voters when lawmakers defect from their party. The voters should have the right to choose the defectors if they support their move. The anti-hopping law would have created a monster that makes parties too strong if Article 48(6) was not removed,” he told FMT.

James Chin, a professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania, said removing the clause had not created any loophole and if the BN MPs quit as speculated, it would be a high-risk strategy.

“It must be remembered that BN MPs won with mainly small majorities, so going back to get a mandate from the same voters you betrayed will make it harder. Even a high-profile leader like Khairy Jamaluddin lost in an urban seat, so not all 15 who quit can get re-elected.

“If I were Anwar Ibrahim, I would call their bluff. The alleged move is not about by-elections, but rather building momentum,” he said.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said it would not be possible for the unity government to make another constitutional amendment to put back clause 6 into Article 48.

“It won’t get the two-thirds majority obviously. However, if the 15 MPs quit their seats as speculated, you can expect the voters to punish them for creating turmoil in the country,” he said.