Ramkarpal Singh s/o Karpal Singh (Punjabi: ਰਾਮਕਰਪਾਲ ਸਿੰਘ, romanized: Rāmkarpāl Siṅgh; born 9 April 1976) commonly referred to as Ramkarpal Singh, is a Malaysian politician and lawyer who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bukit Gelugor since May 2014. He served as the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of Law and Institutional Reforms in the Unity Government administration under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Minister Azalina Othman Said from December 2022 to his resignation in December 2023 and Chairman of the Consideration of Bills Select Committee from July 2019 to 2020. He is a member of Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component party of the PH coalition. He is the son of Karpal Singh and younger brother of Gobind Singh Deo, the Minister of Digital and the MP for Damansara as well as Jagdeep Singh Deo, the Deputy Chief Minister of Penang II and Member of the Penang State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Datok Keramat.
Ramkarpal Singh | |
|---|---|
ਰਾਮਕਰਪਾਲ ਸਿੰਘ | |
| Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reforms) | |
| In office 10 December 2022 – 12 December 2023 | |
| Monarch | Abdullah |
| Prime Minister | Anwar Ibrahim |
| Minister | Azalina Othman Said |
| Preceded by | Mas Ermieyati Samsudin (Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law)) |
| Succeeded by | M. Kulasegaran |
| Constituency | Bukit Gelugor |
| Member of the Malaysian Parliament for Bukit Gelugor | |
| Assumed office 25 May 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Karpal Singh (PR–DAP) |
| Majority | 37,659 (2014) 55,951 (2018) 63,112 (2022) |
| Other roles | |
| 2019–2020 | Chairman of the Consideration of Bills Select Committee |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ramkarpal Singh s/o Karpal Singh 9 April 1976 Penang, Malaysia |
| Citizenship | Malaysian |
| Political party | Democratic Action Party (DAP) |
| Other political affiliations | Pakatan Rakyat (PR) (2008–2015) Pakatan Harapan (PH) (since 2015) |
| Relations | Jagdeep Singh Deo (brother) Gobind Singh Deo (brother) |
| Parent(s) | Karpal Singh (father) Gurmit Kaur (mother) |
| Alma mater | University of Bristol |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Education
Ramkarpal was educated in Penang, first at St. Xavier's Institution and then Seri Inai School (now Tenby International School). He earned his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Bristol in the UK and was called to the bar by Gray's Inn.
Politics
After the death of his father Karpal, Ramkarpal was elected as the MP for Bukit Gelugor constituency.[1] He was the only Pakatan Rakyat's candidate for the 2014 Bukit Gelugor by-election.[2] He won the Bukit Gelugor by-election with 37,659 votes majority. He was sworn as MP on 10 July 2014. He retained his Bukit Gelugor seat by an even larger 55,951-vote majority in the 2018 General Elections, when his coalition, Pakatan Harapan (PH), defeated the incumbent Barisan Nasional (BN) to form the government.
On 18 July 2019, Ramkarpal was selected as chair of the Consideration of Bills Select Committee, replacing Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar.[3]
Legal career
He was admitted to the Malaysian bar in 2000. Currently, he heads his late father's law firm in Green Hall, Penang.
Ramkarpal is also the legal representative for the family of Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu.[4][5] In June 2018, he assisted Altantuya's father, Shaariibuu, in meeting with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.[6]
Death of Karpal Singh
Ramkarpal was travelling with his father from his Pudu office to Penang when the accident happened.[7][8] According to Ramkarpal, his father was asleep before the fatal crash took place, claiming the life of Karpal and his personal aide, Michael Cornelius Selvam.[9]
Election results
| Year | Constituency | Candidate | Votes | Pct | Opponent(s) | Votes | Pct | Ballots cast | Majority | Turnout | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | P051 Bukit Gelugor | Ramkarpal Singh Karpal Singh (DAP) | 41,242 | 89.95% | Huan Cheng Guan (PCM) | 3,583 | 7.81% | 46,438 | 37,659 | 56.34% | ||
| Mohd Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abdul Sathar (IND) | 799 | 1.74% | ||||||||||
| Abu Backer Sidek Mohammad Zan (IND) | 225 | 0.49% | ||||||||||
| 2018 | Ramkarpal Singh Karpal Singh (DAP) | 65,622 | 86.68% | Low Joo Hiap (MCA) | 9,671 | 12.77% | 76,489 | 55,951 | 83.51% | |||
| Lai Xue Ching (MUP) | 412 | 0.54% | ||||||||||
| 2022 | Ramkarpal Singh Karpal Singh (DAP) | 71,204 | 82.73% | Thinagaranabhan Padmanabhan (BERSATU) | 8,092 | 9.40% | 86,996 | 63,112 | 76.90% | |||
| Wong Chin Chang (MCA) | 6,777 | 7.87% | ||||||||||
