The Supreme Court has upheld nine-month prison sentences for three Bhumjaithai Party MPs convicted of proxy voting, dismissing their appeal as groundless.
The MPs, Chalong Thoetwiraphong, Phumsit Khongmi, and Natee Ratchakitprakarn, were found guilty of allowing others to use their electronic voting cards during a 2020 parliamentary session on the budget bill. Their actions violated the 2018 Organic Act on Anti-Corruption.
The court reduced their sentences to nine months, acknowledging their beneficial testimonies, but also revoked their political rights indefinitely, barring them from holding any political office permanently.
The MPs appealed for leniency and a suspended sentence, admitting their guilt. However, the judges deemed their actions severely damaging to public trust and democratic governance, thus denying the suspended sentence.
Despite their later acknowledgment of wrongdoing and positive contributions to society, the court maintained that these were insufficient reasons to alter their punishment. The original ruling was upheld. (TNA)
