Summary
Arumugam Ponnu Rajah (7 July 1911 – 28 September 1999), also known as A. P. Rajah, was a Singaporean judge, diplomat and politician who served as Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore between 1964 and 1966.
Arumugam Ponnu Rajah | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 1964 | |
| Judge of the Supreme Court of Singapore | |
| In office 1 October 1976 – 30 September 1990 | |
| 1st Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore | |
| In office 1964–1966 | |
| Deputy | Fong Kim Heng Punch Coomaraswamy[1] |
| Preceded by | Edmund W. Barker |
| Succeeded by | Punch Coomaraswamy |
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Farrer Park SMC | |
| In office 1959–1963 | |
| Preceded by | Anthony Rebeiro Lazarous |
| Succeeded by | S. R. Dharmarajoo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 July 1911 Port Dickson, British Malaya |
| Died | 28 September 1999 (aged 88) Singapore |
| Resting place | Bidadari Cemetery, Singapore |
| Spouse |
Vijaya Lakshmi (died 1971) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | University of Oxford |
| Occupation |
|
Rajah also served as Singapore High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and later Singapore High Commissioner to Australia.[2][3]
He was Singapore's first Supreme Court judge to remain on the bench after turning 70.[3][4]
Education edit
Rajah received his early education at St. Paul's Institution and Raffles Institution.[5] In 1932, he attended University of Oxford where he received a law degree.[5] He was later conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws by the National University of Singapore (NUS) on 14 November 1984.[6]
Career edit
In 1948, Rajah contested in the Legislative Council of Singapore for Rural West Constituency as a Progressive Party candidate but lose to independent candidate, Srish Chandra Goho (S C Goho).[7][8] In 1949, Rajah was elected a city councillor.[9] In 1953, Rajah represented Singapore to attend the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.[10] In 1959, Rajah re-entered politics as an independent candidate[11] and was elected to the Legislative Assembly for Farrer Park.[12] He lost his seat in 1963,[13] but was appointed the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Singapore in 1964.[3] In 1965, after Singapore gained independence, the Legislative Assembly of Singapore was renamed the Parliament of Singapore and he became the first Speaker of the Parliament.[3]
In 1966, Rajah was appointed as the High Commissioner to UK.[14] Between 1971 and 1973, he was appointed as the High Commissioner to Australia and Fiji.[14]
Rajah returned to Singapore in 1973 to resume legal practice, and was later appointed as a Supreme Court judge on 1 October 1976.[14] He held the appointment till he retired on 30 September 1990 at the age of 79.[4]
Rajah was the Pro-Chancellor of National University of Singapore from 1990 to 1999.[15]
Family and death edit
Rajah died on 28 September 1999.[5][16] His wife, Vijaya Lakshmi had died before him in 1971.[5] He was survived by his son Chelva and daughter Mala.[5]
References edit
- ^ "Speakers of Parliament". Parliament of Singapore. Archived from the original on 21 January 2020.
Scroll to bottom and expand the list of former Deputy Speaker
- ^ "My first task—by Mr. Rajah". The Straits Times. 7 August 1966. p. 6.
- ^ a b c d "Justice Rajah re-appointed". The Straits Times. 11 October 1987. p. 15.
- ^ a b "Justice A.P. Rajah retires after 14 years on the Bench". The Straits Times. 29 September 1990. p. 26.
- ^ a b c d e "Former Supreme Court judge and envoy dies". The Straits Times. 30 September 1999. p. 28.
- ^ "President for NUS convocation". The Straits Times. 13 November 1984. p. 11.
- ^ "Election Results". The Straits Times. 21 March 1948. p. 1.
- ^ "Singapore Legislative Council General Election 1948 > Rural West". Singapore Elections. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
- ^ Who's who in Malaysia and guide to Singapore. J. V. Morais. p. 112.
- ^ "Coming home". The Straits Times. 7 July 1953. p. 7.
- ^ "Now a whole Lib-Soc committee resigns". The Straits Times. 23 April 1959. p. 6.
- ^ "THE RESULTS: ALL YOU". The Straits Times. 31 May 1959. p. 4.
- ^ "THIS IS THE WAY THE VOTING WENT". The Straits Times. 22 September 1963. p. 2.
- ^ a b c "RAJAH MADE A HIGH COURT JUDGE". The Straits Times. 5 September 1976. p. 1.
- ^ "President Wee Kim Wee with Pro-Chancellors of National University of Singapore at NUS convocation, 1990". BookSG. Retrieved 20 April 2020 – via NLB.
- ^ Chia, Joshua Yeong Jia (2016). "Arumugam Ponnu Rajah". infopedia – via NLB.