Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended on Wednesday Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin for appointing a former lawyer serving a jail term to his cabinet, sparking the threat of fresh political upheaval and a reset of the ruling alliance.
Real estate tycoon Srettha became the fourth Thai PM in 16 years to be suspended by the same court, which ruled that he had violated the constitution by appointing an unethical minister.
Srettha’s ouster after less than a year in power means parliament must convene to choose a new prime minister, which could lead to more uncertainty in a country that has suffered two decades of coups and court rulings that have brought down several governments and political parties.
Last week, the same court dissolved the anti-elitist Forward Movement party, a hugely popular opposition party, ruling that its campaign to reform the law on insulting the crown risked undermining the constitutional monarchy. On Friday, it merged to form a new party.
Srettha’s Pheu Thai Party and its predecessors have borne the brunt of Thailand’s upheaval, with two of its governments ousted in coups in a long-running standoff between the party’s founders, the billionaire Shinawatra family, and their rivals from the conservative establishment and royalist military.
The decision could shatter the fragile truce between political heavyweight Thaksin Shinawatra and his foes among the conservative elite and the old military guard that allowed the tycoon to return from a 15-year self-exile in 2023 and his ally Srettha to become prime minister on the same day.
Srettha claimed his appointment of former Shinawatra lawyer Pichit Chuenban, who was briefly jailed in 2008 for contempt of court over an alleged attempt to bribe court officials, went through without any irregularities. The bribery charges were never proven, and Pichit resigned in May. Deputy PM Phumtham Wechayachai is expected to take over as interim PM.
