COMMENT | Negeri Sembilan is now in the grip of an extraordinary constitutional crisis – one that strikes at the very heart of its celebrated Adat Perpatih system.

On April 19, the four undangs – the powerful chieftains of Sungai Ujong, Rembau, Johol, and Jelebu – publicly proclaimed that Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir, the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan, had been deposed over alleged “misconduct”.

No details were provided to substantiate the accusation. In the same declaration, they named Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja’afar, the son of the previous ruler, as the new Yang di-Pertuan Besar.

The following day, Menteri Besar Aminuddin Harun declared the move invalid. His position was premised on the assertion that Mubarak Thahak, the undang of Sungai Ujong, had earlier been stripped of his office on April 17 by the Council of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar and the Ruling Chiefs (Dewan Keadilan dan Undang), for allegedly committing 33 breaches of adat and law.

The four undang rejected this claim, accusing the menteri besar of misrepresentation and insisting that no such collective decision had been validly reached.

The crisis escalated further when they...