BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand’s Constitutional Court on Thursday ordered the dissolution of an opposition party for nominating the king’s sister as its candidate for prime minister in a March 24 election.
Banning the Thai Raksa Chart party just over two weeks before the general election struck a blow to opposition parties’ chances of defeating parties allied to the military junta that has ruled since a coup d’etat in 2014.
“The court has ordered that the party be dissolved,” Judge Taweekiet Meenakanit said in the ruling, which also banned the party’s executive board members from politics for 10 years.
Thai Raksa Chart is one of several parties loyal to ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in an election that broadly pits his supporters against establishment parties, including one that has junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha as its prime ministerial candidate.
Thai Raksa Chart party leader Preechapol Pongpanich and members of his party arrive at the Constitutional Court in Bangkok, Thailand, March 7, 2019. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetah
The final rites of veteran broadcaster, writer, and lyricist Nirmala de Alwis will be held today at Peradeniya.
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