The Constitutional Court will deliberate on November 15 on whether or not to terminate the Member of Parliament status of Pita Limjaroenrat due to his possession of iTV media shares at the time of his election candidacy.
The court accepted a petition submitted by the Election Commission on July 19th, and Pita, the accused, was granted two extensions of 30 days each to submit his defense. The Constitutional Court has conducted 11 procedural hearings, calling for opinions and evidence from relevant individuals and organizations. The final consideration is scheduled for Wednesday, November 15th.
In a separate case, independent lawyer Thirayuth Suwannagasorn requested the Constitutional Court to rule under Section 49 of the Constitution on the actions of Pita, when he was the leader of the Move Forward Party, and the Move Forward Party itself, regarding their proposal to amend the Criminal Code portion of Section 112 of the constitution — commonly known as the lese majeste law — as part of their election campaign policy.
The petitioner argued whether this constitutes an exercise of rights or freedom to overthrow the Constitutional Monarchy regime. The court accepted this petition on July 12th, and after 37 hearings to gather evidence, has directed related agencies to submit their opinions and documentary evidence within seven days of notification. The continuation of this case is also set for November 15th. (NNT)
