PETALING JAYA: Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja’afar and the four purported undangs of Negeri Sembilan have disputed the sacking of the 10 state executive council members last month.
Tunku Nadzaruddin reiterated his claim to the throne tonight, claiming that Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir was no longer Yang Dipertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan when the appointments of the exco members were revoked on Sept 20.
"We stress that the revocation of the 10 exco members' appointments was invalid and unconstitutional as, at the time, Tuanku Muhriz was no longer Yang Dipertuan Besar.
"Therefore, menteri besar Ismail Lasim and his exco lineup may continue leading the Negeri Sembilan administration," he said in a joint statement with the four "undangs" and the Tunku Besar Tampin.
They argued that Tuanku Muhriz was removed as ruler on Sept 15 following the state exco's decision to "execute" the proclamation previously made by the purported undangs.
They added that the Conference of Rulers was informed about this by Ismail in a letter on Sept 21.
Tunku Nadzaruddin was purportedly proclaimed as the “new” Yang Dipertuan Besar on June 5 by one of the undangs at a five-star hotel in Melaka.
However, the federal government contends that Tuanku Muhriz remains the recognised Yang Dipertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan.
In September, a month after being sworn in as menteri besar, Ismail claimed he was coerced into signing a proclamation seeking to remove Tuanku Muhriz, saying the document was invalid.
Several days later, the Negeri Sembilan exco members issued a statement claiming that Tuanku Muhriz’s removal in April was legitimate, and that Tunku Nadzaruddin was, therefore, the new ruler.
Ismail shifted from his initial stance and endorsed the exco's statement. However, the Attorney-General’s Chambers said the announcement had no legal effect while the state's Dewan Keadilan dan Undang affirmed Tuanku Muhriz as ruler.
Tuanku Muhriz then revoked the appointments of the 10 exco members, who were barred by authorities from entering their offices.
Last Friday, Tuanku Muhriz sternly admonished Ismail when they met at a mosque in Negeri Sembilan.