Constitution of Malaysia in the context of "Social contract (Malaysia)"

Islam in Malaysia is represented by the Shafi‘i school of Sunni jurisprudence. Islam was introduced to Malaysia by traders arriving from Persia, Arabia, China and the Indian subcontinent. It became firmly established in the 15th century. In the Constitution of Malaysia, Islam is granted the status of "religion of the Federation" to symbolize its importance to Malaysian society, while defining Malaysia constitutionally as a secular state. Therefore, other religions can be practiced legally, though freedom of religion is still limited in Malaysia.

Malaysia is a country whose most professed religion is Islam. As of 2024, there were approximately 22.4 million Muslim adherents, or 65% of the population.

The Government of Malaysia, officially the Federal Government of Malaysia (Malay: Kerajaan Persekutuan Malaysia; Jawi: ‏كراجأن ڤرسكوتوان مليسيا‎), is based in the Federal Territory of Putrajaya, with the exception of the legislative branch, which is located in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is a federation composed of the 11 States of Malaya, the Borneo States of Sabah and Sarawak, and 3 Federal Territories operating within a constitutional monarchy under the Westminster system and is categorised as a representative democracy. The federal government of Malaysia adheres to and is created by the Federal Constitution of Malaysia, the supreme law of the land.

The federal government adopts the principle of separation of powers under Article 127 of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia, and has three branches: the executive, legislature, and judiciary. The state governments in Malaysia also have their respective executive and legislative bodies. The judicial system in Malaysia is a federalised court system operating uniformly throughout the country.

Putrajaya (Malay pronunciation: [ˌputraˈd͡ʒaja, ˌputrəˈd͡ʒajə] ), officially the Federal Territory of Putrajaya (Malay: Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya), is the administrative centre of Malaysia. The seat of the federal government of Malaysia was moved in 1999 from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya because of overcrowding and congestion, whilst the seat of the judiciary of Malaysia was later moved to Putrajaya in 2003. Kuala Lumpur remains as Malaysia's national capital city per the constitution and is still the seat of the head of state (Yang di-Pertuan Agong) and the national legislature (Parliament of Malaysia), as well as being the country's commercial and financial centre.

The establishment of Putrajaya was the idea of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. First thought of in the 1990s, Putrajaya was envisioned to be “a laboratory for a new form of electronic government" that would emphasize new adoption of and investment in internet, media, and digital communications. The development of Putrajaya began in August 1995 and was completed at an estimated cost of US$8.1 billion. On 1 February 2001, Putrajaya became Malaysia's third federal territory, after Kuala Lumpur in 1974 and Labuan in 1984. Putrajaya is also a part of MSC Malaysia, a special economic zone that covers the Klang Valley.

The Cabinet of Malaysia (Malay: Jemaah Menteri Malaysia) is the executive branch of the Government of Malaysia. Led by the Prime Minister, the cabinet is a council of ministers who are accountable collectively to the Parliament. According to the Article 43 of the Federal Constitution, members of the Cabinet can only be selected from members of either houses of Parliament. Formally, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints all Ministers on the advice of the Prime Minister. The constitution is amended by repealing the Clause (8) of Article 43, enabling a person who is a member of State Legislative Assembly to continue to serve even while serving as a minister or deputy minister in the cabinet. Ministers other than the Prime Minister shall hold office during the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, unless the appointment of any Minister shall have been revoked by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the Prime Minister but any Minister may resign from office. In practice, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is obliged to follow the advice of the Prime Minister on the appointment and dismissal of ministers.

Judiciary of Malaysia is largely centralised despite Malaysia being a federation. Malaysia's judiciary is governed by Part IX of the Federal Constitution, and has jurisdiction over wide range of civil and criminal matters. It is also heavily influenced by the English common law, and occasionally by case law from other Commonwealth countries.

Malaysia also has another set of state-level courts known as the Syariah Courts, which is separate from the aforementioned secular judiciary and operate according to Islamic jurisprudence, but with limited jurisdiction.

The Constitution of the Republic of Singapore is the supreme law of Singapore. A written constitution, the text which took effect on 9 August 1965 is derived from the Constitution of the State of Singapore 1963, provisions of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia made applicable to Singapore by the Republic of Singapore Independence Act 1965 (No. 9 of 1965, 1985 Rev. Ed.), and the Republic of Singapore Independence Act itself. The text of the Constitution is one of the legally binding sources of constitutional law in Singapore, the others being judicial interpretations of the Constitution, and certain other statutes. Non-binding sources are influences on constitutional law such as soft law, constitutional conventions, and public international law.

In the exercise of its original jurisdiction – that is, its power to hear cases for the first time – the High Court carries out two types of judicial review: judicial review of legislation, and judicial review of administrative acts. Although in a 1980 case the Privy Council held that the fundamental liberties in Part IV of the Constitution should be interpreted generously, Singapore courts usually adopt a philosophy of deference to Parliament and a strong presumption of constitutional validity, which has led to fundamental liberties being construed narrowly in certain cases. The courts also generally adopt a purposive approach, favouring interpretations that promote the purpose or object underlying constitutional provisions.

The Constitution of Malaysia establishes a right to freedom of religion in Article 11. However, Islam is also established as the state religion of the country in article 3, and article 11 provides for legal restrictions on proselytizing to Muslims. According to Freedom House, the country was scored 1 out of 4 for freedom of religion, with 0 being the worst and 4 being the best, in 2023. Muslims themselves are subject to state enforcement of religious practices; they can be fined by the state for not fasting or praying, may be prohibited from converting, and ethnic Malay are legally defined as Muslim. Other religious communities are a large fraction of the population, while individuals with no religious affiliation (atheist, agnostic or other irreligious life stances) are much rarer.

The Dewan Rakyat (English: House of Representatives, lit. 'People's Hall'; Jawi: ديوان رعية‎), is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament which is the federal legislature of Malaysia. The chamber and its powers are established by Article 44 of the Constitution of Malaysia. The Dewan Rakyat sits in the Houses of Parliament in Kuala Lumpur, along with the Dewan Negara, the upper house.

The Dewan Rakyat is a directly elected body consisting of 222 members known as Members of Parliament (MPs). Members are elected by first-past-the-post voting with one member from each federal constituency. Members hold their seats until the Dewan Rakyat is dissolved, the term of which is constitutionally limited to five years after an election. The number of seats each state or territory is entitled to is fixed by Article 46 of the Constitution.