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

Former Court of Appeal Judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar was recognised for his contributions to legal scholarship. — Picture via Facebook

First Published: Monday, 26 Oct 2026 2:32 PM MYT

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