Thailand PM hopeful Pita Limjaroenrat's party may be dissolved over proposal to amend monarchy law: Thai media

If found guilty, he and his party could be disqualified from politics.

Yen Zhi Yi| July 12, 2023, 06:53 PM

Thailand’s Constitutional Court has accepted a complaint against opposition leader Pita Limjaroenrat and his Move Forward Party (MFP) over their policy to amend a law that prohibits insult of their royalty.

A lawyer had filed a complaint, alleging that the MFP attempted "to overthrow the democratic regime of government with the king as a head of state," according to Reuters.

This alludes to one of MFP's most prominent policy positions, the reform of Thailand's powerful Lese Majeste law, which prohibits criticism of the monarchy.

Pita has been given 15 days to clarify the matter with the Constitutional Court, Thai Enquirer reported.

If found guilty of attempting to overthrow the constitutional monarchy system, he could be banned from politics, while his party may face dissolution.

Disqualification threat

This came shortly after Thailand's Election Commission (EC) said on Jul. 12 that it will seek a court ruling on whether Pita should be disqualified over his shares in media company iTV .

The EC has also asked the court to order Pita to suspend his MP duties immediately until the court decides if there is a case to answer.

However, a high-ranking source from the court was later cited saying that it would not be considering the case of his shares today (Jul. 12).

The MFP has responded to the EC, accusing it of not following its own regulations, and thus "committing malfeasance in office", according to a translation by Thai PBS World.

The court’s decision comes a day before the members of Thailand's parliament are set to vote on the new Prime Minister, slated to take place on Jul. 13.

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Top image via Facebook/Pita Limjaroenrat