KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — Umno vice president Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin today said that Bersatu is merely contesting in the Johor state election to stop those dubbed as the "court cluster”, a colloquial term used to lump Umno leaders facing criminal charges.

He said instead of having a proper plan for the future and fresh ambitions for the people, Bersatu’s is only focused on stopping "court cluster” leaders from being in power.

Khaled took a swipe at Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for continuously harping on the issue, while everyone else has moved on and is currently focusing on improving the country’s economy.

"Apparently Bersatu’s involvement in the Johor PRN is only to oppose the "court cluster”.  No concrete plans, sketches for the future and fresh ambitions.

"What is more strange is that no one whom he calls the 'court cluster' is contesting in Johor or has anything to do with the Johor Government administration,” he said in a statement today.

In his Facebook post yesterday, Muhyiddin wrote that the only way to stop Umno’s "court cluster” leaders is by defeating Barisan Nasional (BN) in the upcoming Johor polls.

"If Umno wins in the Johor state elections, they will urge the prime minister to dissolve Parliament and hold a general election (GE15),” he reportedly said.

PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang had previously also blamed Umno’s court cluster for triggering the Johor state elections.

The Election Commission (EC) has set March 12 as polling day for the 15th Johor state election.

Nomination day is February 26 and early polling will be held on March 8.

A total of 2.597 million voters are eligible to cast their ballots in the election