KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 -- Negeri Sembilan caretaker Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun has rejected claims that he is abandoning the Sikamat state seat he has held for four terms, defending his decision to contest Barisan Nasional (BN) stronghold Linggi in a high-stakes gamble for Pakatan Harapan (PH).

In a Facebook post today, the Negeri Sembilan PH chairman dismissed speculation over his move, insisting he was "not running away from Sikamat".

"I am not running away from Sikamat," he wrote.

Aminuddin said he had passed the baton in Sikamat to his political secretary, Ustaz Nor Azman Mohamad, who was announced as PH's candidate for the seat earlier this week.

"I've passed the baton to Ustaz Norazman to contest in Sikamat. I've to...