Political commentator Rawiri Taonui says the Maori Party's suspension of MP Hone Harawira could lead to serious fallout.
The MP for Te Tai Tokerau was suspended from the party's caucus on Monday after co-leaders Pita Sharples and Mrs Turia said they can no longer trust him.
Mr Harawira faces a disciplinary committee on Wednesday night over comments made in a newspaper article criticising his party over its close relationship with National. The complaint was laid by party whip Te Ururoa Flavell.
Events at Waitangi to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi last weekend have also increased tensions, with Mr Harawira giving a 'state of the nation' speech an hour before Dr Sharples was due to deliver his.
At the traditional Treaty forum on Saturday night, Mr Harawira said leaders who lost the courage and vigour to fight for the founding kaupapa (principles) of the Maori Party should be replaced.
Rawiri Taonui thinks suspending Mr Harawira shortly before the formal disciplinary hearing pre-empts the independence of the panel considering the complaint.
Professor Taonui, the former head of the School of Maori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Canterbury, says the process will be wide open to legal challenge and could prompt many people to leave the Maori Party in protest.
Broadcaster and former MP Willie Jackson and Maori lawyer Annette Sykes agree the Maori Party is breaching due process in its dealings with Mr Harawira.
Labour Party MP Shane Jones claims the Maori Party has already begun looking for a new candidate to stand in Te Tai Tokerau.
Mr Jones says Dr Sharples used his time at Waitangi to scout for a new candidate.
