There was a heavy police presence, and they wanted to stop the politician from speaking because his Parti Keadilan Rakyat did not have a permit to hold a rally.

But Datuk Seri Anwar, flanked by supporters chanting reformasi, or reform, was ushered into the party's elections operations centre, on the ground floor of a low-cost apartment block.

'They cannot stop me,' he told his cheering audience.

'They put me in jail because I fought for what is right, and they can do it again.'

The policemen stood by, unable to stop the political event.

This scene at Desa Mentari is being played out time and again across Malaysia.

Over the past year, the former deputy prime minister has been waging a spirited political battle against the government, drawing large crowds.

That, in turn, has made him a big wild card in the coming elections, widely expected to be called by the middle of next month.

'Anwar will be a thorn because he still enjoys credibility, and there is still a sympathy factor (in his favour),' said Mr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, who teaches sociology at the National University of Malaysia.

Once the protege of ex-premier Mahathir Mohamad, Datuk Seri Anwar was sacked and subsequently jailed on charges of corruption and sexual misconduct in 1998, after he fell out with his then boss.

Released in 2004, he has since moved back into mainstream politics.

But under Malaysian law, his criminal conviction means Datuk Seri Anwar can only stand for public office after mid-April.

This means he will have to sit out the coming national elections.

Still, analysts say he is expected to play a major role in the polls, a prospect his rivals in the ruling Umno are not taking lightly.

In many urban areas, where anti-establishment sentiment is running high among non-Malays, Datuk Seri Anwar's partners in the opposition hope he will help convince the Malay voters to abandon the government in favour of opposition candidates.

In the Malay-dominated rural areas, his allies, particularly the conservative Parti Islam SeMalaysia, hope he can convince the electorate to pick the opposition.

Datuk Seri Anwar's ability to inflict damage on Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's government cannot be underestimated.

Consider the ongoing Royal Commission of Inquiry into the allegations of corruption in the Malaysian judiciary.

Datuk Seri Anwar forced the government to conduct a probe into allegations of impropriety after he released last September a video clip which allegedly shows a prominent lawyer brokering judicial appointments.

The Royal Commission has since questioned several of the country's former top judges and also Tun Dr Mahathir.

Lawyers and political analysts say the revelations from the inquiry have embarrassed the government and raised serious questions about the integrity of the judiciary.

Umno politicians say they have yet to train their guns on Datuk Seri Anwar, but they believe he can be neutralised.

'It is easy to criticise the government. But we can show that when he was in government, he did very little,' said a political secretary to a senior minister.

But Datuk Seri Anwar's senior aide, Mr Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, said: 'They have thrown everything at us before, and nothing has stuck.'

ljlopez@sph.com.sg