Tuanku Muhriz is still the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan
Much of the mainstream media called 5 June a DKU sitting that installed Tunku Nadzaruddin as the new Ruler. It did neither.
The events of 5 June 2026 in Negeri Sembilan was widely reported, and the sequence of events is by now well documented. In short:
The Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) or the state assembly was dissolved on the Menteri Besar (MB)’s advice and with the consent of Tuanku Muhriz, clearing the way for a snap election (The Edge, 4 June 2026).
The “Ruling Chiefs”1 called a special Dewan Keadilan dan Undang (DKU) sitting at Tampin for 5 June in order to suspend the DKU secretary and install Tunku Nadzaruddin as the new Yang di-Pertuan Besar (Malay Mail, 5 June 2026).
The Seremban High Court granted an interim injunction to preserve the status quo and stop the planned DKU sitting, barring any move to remove its secretary (The Star, 5 June 2026).
On 5 June morning, police briefly locked the gate at the official residence of the Tunku Besar Tampin, the venue for the attempted DKU sitting, before the Tunku Besar Tampin opened it himself (Malay Mail, 5 June 2026). Interestingly, the removed Undang Mubarak was absent, the very chieftain who insists he still holds the Sungei Ujong title. Also absent were the Yang di-Pertuan Besar, Tuanku Muhriz (the DKU chairman) and Tunku Besar Seri Menanti Tunku Ali Redhauddin.
Hours later, in what the Malay Mail reported as “apparent defiance of an interim injunction from the High Court”, Rais Yatim, the former Menteri Besar (MB), declared that Tunku Nadzaruddin had been proclaimed the twelfth Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan (Malay Mail, 6 June 2026).
Tunku Nadzaruddin was reportedly kept by police from leaving his hotel in Melaka, so the “installation ceremony” was held in a bizarre location, outside the state of Negeri Sembilan, at a hotel in Melaka in what was described as “a farcical “installation” of Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja’afar” (The Scoop, 7 June 2026). (New Straits Times, 5 June 2026).
By Rais’ account, the proclamation was announced by the Undang of Jelebu, Maarof Mat Rashad, on behalf of the “Undang Yang Empat”1, with Maarof and the Tunku Besar Tampin physically present and three other adat leaders (Undang of Johol, Undang of Rembau and the Dato’ Shahbandar of Sungei Ujong) via Zoom (Sinar Harian, 5 June 2026).
The state government rejected the move and maintained that Tuanku Muhriz remains the lawful Yang di-Pertuan Besar. (Malay Mail, 5 June 2026).
The Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, reaffirmed that the federation recognises Tuanku Muhriz as His Highness (Free Malaysia Today, 5 June 2026).
Rais claimed that the Undangs are the co-rulers and members of the Negeri Sembilan royal family.
In his statement to the police, Rais said,
“…anda menghalang orang daripada memasuki premis sebuah institusi yang diberi kuasa di bawah Perkara 18 Perlembagaan Negeri Sembilan. Mereka ini ialah Undang Luak Johol dan Jelebu, yang merupakan pembesar negeri. Mereka adalah pemerintah bersama (negeri ini). Ini tidak pernah berlaku sebelum ini, dan tanpa sebarang notis. Apa yang anda lakukan lebih teruk daripada komunis. Apakah kesalahan yang kami lakukan di sini? Ini adalah kerabat diraja Negeri Sembilan.”
Translation:
“…you are blocking people from entering the premises of an institution empowered under Article 18 of the Negeri Sembilan Constitution. These are the Undang of Luak Johol and Jelebu, who are chiefs of the state. They are co-rulers (of this state). This has never happened before, and without any notice. What you are doing is worse than the communists. What wrong have we committed here? These are members of the Negeri Sembilan royal family” (Malaysiakini, 5 June 2026).
Rais was not merely protesting exclusion from a meeting. He was advancing a theory in which the Undangs are co-rulers of Negeri Sembilan and outrageously claiming that they are members of the royal family.
How did the mainstream media frame the proclamation?
The coverage was divided. One set of reports presented Tunku Nadzaruddin as the new Yang di-Pertuan Besar, either as an established fact or by attributing it to its proponents. That framing treats the central constitutional question as already settled when it is not. Tuanku Muhriz has not been removed and Tunku Nadzaruddin has not validly been installed.
Media articles presenting Tunku Nadzaruddin as Yang di-Pertuan Besar:
Tunku Nadzaruddin named Yang di-Pertuan Besar amid Negri crisis (The Star, 6 June 2026)
Ruling chiefs proclaim Nadzaruddin new Negri ruler, says Rais (The Star, 5 June 2026)
A second set of more careful reports held that Tuanku Muhriz still remains the Yang di-Pertuan Besar, resting on the recognition of the state and the federation.
Media articles presenting Tuanku Muhriz as still the Yang di-Pertuan Besar:
The problem with this
The press carries a particular responsibility here, because most people learn what happened from a headline rather than from the Constitution, and on 5 June much of that reporting fell short of it.
Mainstream headlines shape public understanding of a crisis, and several of them did so incorrectly by repeating the organisers’ vocabulary and implying constitutional legitimacy where none was established.
Proper reporting should have marked the proclamation as contested and the gathering as a meeting of members. Some outlets managed to report on that carefully, others did not.
Why the “installation” of Tunku Nadzarrudin is not valid
Based on Negeri Sembilan Constitution 1959, the legal foundations for that conclusion are absent. One of the principal signatories, Mubarak Dohak, continues to act as Undang of Sungei Ujong despite having ceased to hold that office on 17 April 2026 when the Luak removed him and the Dewan Keadilan dan Undang acknowledged the removal under Article 16. The alleged deposition of Tuanku Muhriz on 19 April was also not valid and both the Negeri Sembilan Government and the Federal Government continued to recognise Tuanku Muhriz as the Yang di-Pertuan Besar.
In these circumstances, reporting that a proclamation occurred is one thing. Reporting that Negeri Sembilan has a new Yang di-Pertuan Besar is another. The first is a statement describes what happened. The second is a statement about the constitutional result of that event.
On 5 June, that proclamation was disputed, unrecognised by the governments concerned. Presenting it as an accomplished constitutional fact therefore risks misleading readers about the actual state of affairs.
Social media has been critical of the move
Social media reaction has been critical of Rais and the Undangs and run heavily toward Tuanku Muhriz, and the sample below illustrates that sentiment.
What this means
The Ruling Chiefs and Rais advanced a claim purporting to install a new Yang di-Pertuan Besar at an unlawful DKU sitting, while Rais also sought to characterise the Undangs as members of the Negeri Sembilan royal family.
Yet, Tuanku Muhriz remains the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan. The constitutional and customary foundations of his position remained intact on 5 June, notwithstanding the events in Melaka.
Proclamations may make headlines, but the throne does not move merely because someone declares that it had.
1 This publication uses the term Undang Yang Empat as shorthand for the signatories. Strictly, the Undang Yang Empat are the four Undangs of Sungei Ujong, Jelebu, Johol, and Rembau; the Tunku Besar Tampin and the Dato’ Shahbandar, who also signed, sit on the DKU under Article 17 and are Ruling Chiefs but but are not Undang. Mubarak Dohak ceased to hold the Sungei Ujong chieftainship on 17 April 2026, his removal occurring under the custom of the Luak and acknowledged by the DKU under Article 16, an acknowledgement Article 16(3) places beyond challenge in any court.”
2 This publication has not independently verified the claims in these social media posts attached.
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Sources:
The Laws of the Constitution of Negeri Sembilan 1959 (Negeri Sembilan State Government, 1959)
High Court grants temporary injunction amid Negri custom crisis (The Star, 5 June 2026)
Kerajaan kekal iktiraf Tuanku Muhriz (Free Malaysia Today, 5 June 2026)
Krisis N. Sembilan: Mahkamah halang Sidang Khas DKU, kekal status quo (Utusan Malaysia, 5 June 2026)
Putrajaya stands firmly behind Tuanku Muhriz, says Anwar (The Star, 5 June 2026)
Ruling chiefs proclaim Nadzaruddin new Negri ruler, says Rais (The Star, 5 June 2026)
Tunku Nadzaruddin dimasyhur sebagai Yang di-Pertuan Besar (Malaysiakini, 5 June 2026)
Tunku Nadzaruddin dimasyhur sebagai Yang di-Pertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan (mStar, 5 June 2026)
Undang Yang Empat masyhur Tunku Nadzaruddin Yang di-Pertuan Besar NS ke-12 (Kosmo, 5 June 2026)
High Court injunction halts DKU special meeting (The Star, 6 June 2026)
Tunku Nadzaruddin named Yang di-Pertuan Besar amid Negri crisis (The Star, 6 June 2026)
Anak Nogori is independent commentary on the unfolding constitutional crisis in Negeri Sembilan, where centuries-old Adat Perpatih, royal succession law, and modern political manoeuvring are colliding in ways Malaysia has never seen before. If you find this useful, share it with someone who should be following this, or subscribe to receive the latest articles in your inbox.
