TUNKU SALLEHUDDIN IS 29TH SULTAN OF KEDAH
He was proclaimed Raja Muda by Sultan Abdul Halim in December
ADIE SURI ZULKEFLI AND EMBUN MAJID ALOR STAR news@nst.com.my
TUNKU Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah, 75, has been proclaimed the 29th Sultan of Kedah, effective yesterday. The proclamation of the Raja Muda of Kedah as the new state ruler follows the demise of his elder brother, Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah announced that Tunku Sallehuddin’s appointment was approved during the Kedah Royal members’ meeting on Monday following the passing of Sultan Abdul Halim. Tunku Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah is proclaimed the 29th Sultan of Kedah at Istana Anak Bukit in Alor Star yesterday.
He said this was in line with Articles 8, 9, 10 and 11 of the Kedah constitution, and the proclamation of Tunku Sallehuddin as sultan was in accordance with Article 17.
The announcement was made
at Balai Penghadapan in Istana Anak Bukit before Sultan Abdul Halim’s body.
After the announcement, Kedah royal ceremony chief Datuk Syed Unan Mashri Syed Abdullah led Tunku Sallehuddin
to the throne, followed by three shouts of “Daulat Tuanku”.
Tunku Sallehuddin then touched the casket in which Sultan Abdul Halim’s body was lying in state as a symbolic gesture to mark the start of the royal funeral service.
In December, Tunku Sallehuddin was proclaimed Raja Muda by Sultan Abdul Halim following the passing of Tunku Malik Sultan Badlishah.
Tunku Sallehuddin was born here in April 1942 and raised at Istana Anak Bukit.
Upon completing his Senior Cambridge, Tunku Sallehuddin underwent a one-year military training stint at the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun, India, in 1962.
He was subsequently commissioned as a lieutenant and was posted to the Royal Malay Regiment, with his first deployment in Pengkalan Chepa, Kelantan.
He is married to Tengku Maliha Tengku Ariff, who is a member of the Kelantan royal family.
The couple has two sons: Datuk Tunku Sarafuddin Badlishah and Datuk Tunku Shazuddin Badlishah. Additional reporting by Ili Shazwani