KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 — Sacked from Umno, Tan Sri Annuar Musa claims he is being courted by its ally-turned-rival PAS.

However, the former Keterah MP said he is hesitant to accept the Islamist party’s invitation, including speaking at PAS events, as it is too soon since his "divorce” from Umno.

"Tonight, I was invited to speak at a PAS rally, but I answered plainly. I’ve just been divorced for three days and they’re already proposing.

"The Melaka PAS Women chief said, ‘if your house got burnt, come stay with us’. Wait first... let the iddah pass first because if a husband dies, there is the iddah period,” he was quoted as saying at an event at Ketereh, Kelantan last night by news portal Malaysiakini.

The term iddah refers to a period in which a Muslim woman cannot remarry after a divorce or the death of her husband.

The former minister also claimed he was sacked for criticising Umno’s top leaders, but he held no ill will against party president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and put it down to a difference in opinion.

He also said he had no regrets for voicing his views as "I like to speak the truth”.

Annuar had hinted at his expulsion from Umno in a cryptic Facebook post about a burning house just hours before the party confirmed it two days ago.

On December 9, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said Annuar was sacked alongside Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim and his wife Datuk Seri Shamsiah Yasin, as well as Datin Seri Fatimah Kassim who had been its Maran women’s chief.

Shahidan defected to Perikatan Nasional (PN) after he was dropped from the Barisan Nasional GE15 ticket.

Fatimah, who is the wife of Maran MP Datuk Seri Ismail Abd Muttalib, defected to PAS and defended their respective seats with the PN coalition.