He was the son of the fourteenth sultan, Sulaiman Badrul Alam Shah and the legitimate heir to the throne of Terengganu.
On 18 October 1943, the Thai government under Prime Minister Field Marshal Plaek Pibulsonggram took over the administration of Terengganu from the Japanese and continued to recognize Sultan Ali as the legitimate Sultan.
[1] When the British returned after the end of World War II, they declined to recognize Sultan Ali.
[2] According to Sultan Ali, the British Military Administration wanted him removed for his refusal to sign the Malayan Union treaty.
[3] The British Military Administration also disapproved of Sultan Ali's character, who was said to have repudiated his official consort Tengku Putri Hajjah ‘Ain ul-Jamal, Tengku Sri Nila Utama of Pahang[citation needed] (the daughter of Sultan Abu Bakar of Pahang) and had a second marriage with a former prostitute.