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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Indian mobile hospital treats over 2,200 cyclone-hit people as New Delhi ramps up relief efforts in
Colombo (PTI): A mobile hospital set up by India in Sri Lanka has provided medical care to over 2,200 people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as New Delhi ramped up its assistance to the flood-ravaged island nation with engineering support and delivery of fresh relief consignments, the Indian mission here said on Sunday.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse triggered by the cyclone, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.
At least 627 people have been killed and 190 remain missing as of Sunday noon due to catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16.
Sharing a social media post by the Ministry of External Affairs on its X handle, the Indian High Commission said a field hospital set up by India in Mahiyanganaya near Kandy has provided medical care to more than 2,200 people affected by the cyclone since December 5.
The hospital has also performed 67 minor procedures and three surgeries, it said. The field hospital was airlifted to Sri Lanka by an IAF C-17 aircraft along with a 78-member Indian medical team on Tuesday.
In another post, the mission said Indian Army engineers, working with Sri Lanka Army Engineers and the Road Development Authority, in Kilinochchi have begun removing a damaged bridge on the Paranthan–Karachchi–Mullaitivu (A35) road, a key route disrupted by the cyclone.
"This joint effort marks another step toward restoring vital connectivity for affected communities," it said.
India has additionally sent nearly 1,000 tonnes of food items and clothing contributed by the people of Tamil Nadu. Of these, about 300 tonnes reached Colombo on Sunday morning aboard three Indian Naval ships.
High Commissioner Santosh Jha handed over the supplies to Sri Lankan Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.
India, on November 28, launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu', a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) initiative, to aid Sri Lanka in its recovery from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Since the launch of the operation, India has provided about 58 tonnes of relief material, including dry rations, tents, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, essential cloths, water purification kits and about 4.5 tonnes of medicines and surgical equipment, the Indian mission said in a press release on Sunday.
Another 60 tonnes of equipment, including generators, inflatable rescue boats, Outboard Motors, and excavators, have also been brought to Sri Lanka, it said, adding that 185 tonnes of Bailey Bridge units were airlifted to restore critical connectivity along with 44 engineers.
Two columns of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising 80 experts and K9 units with specially trained dogs, assisted with immediate rescue and relief efforts in Sri Lanka.
Besides the field hospital in Mahiyanganaya, medical centres have also been set up in the badly hit Ja-Ela region and in Negombo. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri, and INS Sukanya provided immediate rescue and relief assistance to Sri Lanka.
Apart from the two Chetak helicopters deployed from INS Vikrant, two heavy-lift, MI-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force are actively involved in evacuations and airlifting relief material, the release said.
At the request of the Sri Lankan Disaster Management Centre, a virtual meeting was organised between DMC and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s National Remote Sensing Centre on Saturday.
Since the onset of the disaster, ISRO has been providing maps to assist DMC in its rescue efforts, the release said.
