Perak Sultan and former judge Azlan Shah DIES

Sultan of Perak, Raja Azlan Shah, has passed away today at the age of 86.

The death has yet to be announced but it is believed he passed away in the presence of family members on at 1.38pm.

Born in 1928, Azlan Muhibbuddin was the 9th King or Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia from 26 April 1989 to 25 April 1994.

A lawyer by profession, he had served as a judge, and the Lord President of the Federal Court before becoming the Sultan of Perak for 30 years.

Pinnacle of legal profession

As he had elder brothers who outranked him in the order of succession, he was trained for the legal service.

On his return from the United Kingdom, he first served as the Assistant State Secretary of Perak. Thereafter, he joined the Judicial and Legal Service of the Federation of Malaya where he served as a First Class Magistrate and as a Sessions Court president.

Subsequently Raja Azlan was appointed to the following offices: Federal Counsel and Deputy Public Prosecutor, Legal Adviser of the State of Pahang and later of Johor, Registrar of the High Court in Malaya and Chief Registrar of the Federal Court of Malaysia.

In 1965, at the age of only thirty-seven years, Raja Azlan was elevated to the Bench of the High Court of Malaya being the youngest judge to be appointed in the Commonwealth.

In 1973, he was made a Federal Court judge and six years later in 1979, Chief Justice of Malaya, an office which he held until his appointment as the youngest-ever Lord President of the Federal Court of Malaysia on 12 November 1982.

Becoming Sultan

By a strange twist of fate, Raja Azlan Shah was installed Raja Muda (Crown Prince) of Perak by his uncle, Sultan Idris Almutawakkil Alallahi Shah II on 1 July 1983. The long reign of that Sultan had taken its toll on Raja Azlan Shah's elder brothers. In that year, his only surviving elder brother, Raja Baharom Shah, refused the office of Crown Prince and Raja Azlan Shah was suddenly heir to the throne.

Within six months, Sultan Idris died and Azlan Shah succeeded to the throne of Perak on 3 February 1984. In April 1989, Sultan Azlan Shah became the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia. He served the full five year term and returned as Sultan of Perak in 1994.

Royal family

Sultan Azlan Shah married a commoner from Penang, former teacher Bainun binti Mohamad Ali. She is styled as Her Royal Highness The Raja Permaisuri (Queen) of Perak, Tuanku Bainun Binti Mohd. Ali, D.K., D.M.N..

When Sultan Azlan Shah became Yang di-Pertuan Agong, she became the first ever commoner Raja Permaisuri Agong in the history of Malaysia. The couple were the first monarchs of Malaysia to be installed on new gilded silver thrones, replacing the wooden ancient thrones used between 1957 to 1994.

The royal couple have five children, two princes and three princesses. The eldest is Raja Nazrin Shah, who is also Raja Muda (Crown Prince) of Perak. The others are Raja Dato’ Seri Azureen, Raja Dato’ Seri Ashman Shah, Raja Eleena and Raja Yong Sofia.

Raja Ashman Shah died on March 30, 2012.