Former Court of Appeal judge Mahadev Shankar dies at 94, leaves enduring legal legacy

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 — Former Court of Appeal Judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar, renowned for his legal acumen, language mastery, and enduring contributions to Malaysian jurisprudence, died at Shah Alam Hospital at 2 am today. He was 94.

His close friend, Malaysia-India Heritage Society founder-president Prabhakaran Nair, said funeral arrangements would be announced later.

“Sadly, the Malaysia-India Heritage Society has lost a dear well-wisher whose friendship and goodwill we shall always cherish.

“His contributions to the Malaysian judiciary and involvement in the advancement of human rights, including his association with Suhakam (the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia), form an important part of his legacy,” he said.

Mahadev began his legal career in the 1950s and was appointed a High Court judge in August 1983 before being elevated to the Court of Appeal in 1994. He retired from the Bench in November 1997.

Born in Kuala Lumpur in 1932, Mahadev’s early exposure to the courts, coupled with a strong grounding in classical literature and languages, shaped a distinguished career spanning legal practice, judicial service and legal scholarship.

He began practising in Seremban before joining the law firm Shearn Delamore & Co, where he became a partner in 1961. He remained with the firm throughout his legal practice, handling a broad range of cases involving commercial and civil disputes, criminal law and medical negligence.

Mahadev was also recognised for his contributions to legal scholarship. An article he published in the Malayan Law Journal in 1984 on the distinction between putting a case to a witness and merely suggesting something to the witness continued to be cited by the Court of Appeal decades later.

His judgments covered issues ranging from employment disputes and damages in matrimonial cases to delays in the administration of justice.

In one ruling, he cautioned against delays that could leave litigants receiving their awards years later, when victory had become “academic or worse still pyrrhic”.

In a 2014 interview, he described judges as “tigers under the throne”, adapting a phrase traditionally associated with the judiciary’s role under the Crown to reflect the Malaysian context.

Some aspects of Mahadev’s legal career, scholarship and approach to the law were also highlighted by author and senior constitutional lawyer GK Ganesan in his article, ‘Is There Any Point in Learning Things by Heart’, in which he paid tribute to the late judge.

“He was one of the most learned men ever to sit on our Bench. Old English, Sanskrit, the Vedas, the whole of English literature: he knew them as other judges know their law reports. In that company, no judge in this country has equalled him,” Ganesan said. — Bernama

Lynas waste disposal facility reaches 77pc completion as 2031 deadline looms

Loke says RM1,000 driver aid not a Melaka poll sweetener, rollout continues nationwide

Akmal Saleh’s lawyers to file second representation after prosecutors reject bid to drop charge

吉隆坡，10月26日讯——以其卓越的法律才能、精湛的语言技巧以及对马来西亚法学界的深远贡献而闻名的前上诉法院法官拿督马哈德夫·尚卡尔（Datuk Mahadev Shankar）于今日凌晨2点在莎阿南医院逝世，享年94岁。

他的挚友、马来西亚-印度文化遗产协会创始人兼主席普拉巴卡兰·奈尔表示，葬礼安排将稍后公布。

“令人悲痛的是，马来西亚-印度文化遗产协会失去了一位亲爱的挚友，我们将永远珍惜他的友谊和善意。”

他说：“他对马来西亚司法事业的贡献以及在推进人权方面所做的努力，包括他与马来西亚人权委员会（Suhakam）的联系，构成了他留下的重要遗产。”

马哈德夫于 20 世纪 50 年代开始了他的法律职业生涯，并于 1983 年 8 月被任命为高等法院法官，之后于 1994 年晋升为上诉法院法官。他于 1997 年 11 月从法官席位退休。

马哈德夫于 1932 年出生于吉隆坡，早年接触法庭，加上扎实的古典文学和语言基础，造就了他杰出的职业生涯，涵盖法律实践、司法服务和法学研究。

他最初在芙蓉开始执业，之后加入 Shearn Delamore & Co 律师事务所，并于 1961 年成为合伙人。在他的整个法律执业生涯中，他一直留在该事务所，处理各种涉及商业和民事纠纷、刑法和医疗事故的案件。

马哈德夫对法学研究的贡献也备受认可。他于1984年在《马来亚法律杂志》上发表的一篇文章，阐述了向证人陈述案情与仅仅向证人暗示某些事情之间的区别，这篇文章在几十年后仍被上诉法院引用。

他的判决涵盖了从雇佣纠纷和婚姻案件中的损害赔偿到司法行政延误等各种问题。

在一项裁决中，他告诫人们不要拖延，以免诉讼当事人多年后才能获得赔偿，而此时胜利已变得“毫无意义，甚至得不偿失”。

在 2014 年的一次采访中，他将法官描述为“王座下的老虎”，借用了传统上与司法部门在王室统治下的角色相关的短语，以反映马来西亚的背景。

作家兼资深宪法律师 GK Ganesan 在他的文章《死记硬背还有意义吗？》中也重点介绍了 Mahadev 的法律生涯、学术成就和法律方法的一些方面，他在文中向这位已故法官致敬。

“他是我们法官席上学识最渊博的人之一。古英语、梵语、吠陀经、以及所有英国文学作品，他都了如指掌，就像其他法官熟知判例汇编一样。在这个国家，没有哪位法官能与他比肩。”加内桑说道。——马新社

莱纳斯废物处理设施已完成77%，2031年最后期限临近

陆兆福表示，1000令吉的驾驶援助金并非马六甲选举的附加条件，该计划将继续在全国范围内推广。

在检方驳回撤销指控的请求后，阿克马尔·萨利赫的律师将提交第二份辩护状。