Thai constitutional court to rule next week on banning party that nominated princess for PM

Thailand’s Constitutional Court said on Wednesday it will give its ruling on March 7 on whether to ban an opposition party for nominating a princess as its candidate for PM in a general election. The election commission asked the court to dissolve the Thai Raksa Chart party after it nominated Princess Ubolratana for prime minister in the March 24 election, the first since a 2014 military coup. Hours after the announcement, King Maha Vajiralongkorn said his sister’s bid was “inappropriate” and unconstitutional. She was then disqualified by the election commission. The banning of Thai Raksa Chart, one of several parties loyal to military-ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, would be a set-back for opposition chances in the election, Reuters said.