SIMULTANEOUS CALL FOR AN EXPOSURE AND A MAH JONGG (Article 95)

Commentary: When two players claim the same discard, one for an exposure and the other for mah jongg, the player declaring mah jongg always has priority. Even if the player intending to make an exposure has already placed tiles on the rack or racked the discard, the mah jongg claim still overrides it.

Question from a player:  A tile was discarded, and as I started to declare mah jongg, another player quickly racked it for an exposure and said I was too late. Is that correct?
 
Answer from the NMJL:  When two players call the same discard, one player for an exposure and the other for Mah Jongg, the Mah Jongg declarer always has preference, even if the caller’s tiles have been exposed.

Source:  Mah Jongg Made Easy (2024 page 18 #10 [e])