Thai election commission moves to dissolve party linked to princess
Bangkok : Thailand's election commission on Wednesday asked the constitutional court to dissolve a party that proposed a princess as candidate for prime minister, a potentially serious blow to the political aspirations of the kingdom's powerful Shinawatra clan.
Junta-ruled Thailand has sunk into political chaos since Friday, when Princess Ubolratana's name was submitted by Thai Raksa Chart, a party allied with the divisive billionaire ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Her unprecedented bid to enter frontline politics unravelled within hours after King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the 67-year-old Ubolratana's younger brother, decried the entry of a royal into the political fray as "highly inappropriate".
Thailand's powerful and vastly wealthy monarchy is seen as above politics, although royals have intervened before during times of political crisis.
The commission brought a premature end to the princess's political career by disqualifying her as a candidate for premier.
On Wednesday the commission filed a request with the constitutional court to disband Thai Raksa Chart for breaching the political parties law by bringing a royal family member into politics.
"That action is considered hostile to the constitutional monarchy," it said.
It was not immediately clear if the court could rule on Thai Raksa Chart's dissolution before the March 24 election.
If dissolved, the party's executives -- including Shinawatra family members -- could face a long political ban, while its candidates would be unable to run in the poll.
The party said it will contest the move.
"Our party will go ahead (with campaigning) we are the hope of ... our people," party leader Preechaphol Pongpanit said, adding that they were "stunned" by how swiftly events had unfolded over the past few days.
Thai Raksa Chart was set to add to the vote bank of the bigger Shinawatra electoral vehicle, Pheu Thai, in an election where secondary parties are targeting seats via the party list system.
Thailand remains a deeply divided kingdom.
Parties affiliated with Thaksin have won every election since 2001, but their governments have been battered by two coups and a barrage of court cases driven through by an arch-royalist Bangkok-based elite.
Thaksin and his sister Yingluck both live abroad to avoid convictions they say are politically motivated.
To off-set their electoral dominance, the ruling junta scripted a new constitution making the upper house entirely appointed, while limiting the number of constituency seats available at the March poll -- the first election since 2011.
If Thai Raksa Chart is banned it will "reduce the opportunity of the Shinawatra party to have big numbers in parliament", said Titipol
Phakdeewanich, a political scientist at Ubon Ratchathani University.
That would benefit the army-linked party Phalang Pracharat and increase the likelihood of its prime ministerial candidate, junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha, of returning to power as a civilian leader.
Thais have struggled to digest what Princess Ubolratana's short-lived foray into politics means for the kingdom, with analysts left open-jawed by the rare sight of palace intrigue playing out in public.
In an Instagram post late Tuesday Ubolratana apologised for her role in the drama, which has sent jitters across the politically febrile country.
"I'm sorry that my genuine intention to help work for the country and fellow Thai people has created a problem that shouldn't happen in this era," she wrote.
It was tagged with a hashtag: "#howcomeitsthewayitis".
Ubolratana is the first-born of former king Bhumibol Adulyadej, but she gave up her royal titles when she married an American in 1972.
After her divorce she moved back to Thailand, where she is still regarded by the Thai public as a part of the royal family.
While she said she was exercising her rights as a commoner to stand for premier, the palace statement last week said she is "still a member of the House of Chakri", referring to the name of the dynasty.
The monarchy in Thailand is considered sacred and revered by its people, and is under the protection of draconian lese majeste laws. The king's word is considered final.
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Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
