Thai court may seize 76 billion baht from former prime minister

Bangkok - Thailand's Supreme Court said Thursday it would consider a request to seize 76 billion baht (2.1 billion dollars) in assets belonging to controversial former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The measure is potentially the most financially wounding of the many legal actions aimed against Thaksin since his ouster in a September 2006 coup. The Supreme Court for political office holders - a special court established by the constitution to curb political corruption - accepted a lawsuit from the office of the Attorney General alleging Thaksin acquired this wealth through the abuse of power. The key charge is that Thaksin favoured his sprawling business empire while prime minister from 2001 to 2006, enabling his family's share of the Shin Corp holding company to more than triple in value. A six-wheel truck was originally required to carry the 101 boxes containing 200,000 pages of evidence, including copies for all nine judges, to the court. Seksan Bangsombun, director-general of the Attorney General's special litigation department, said that as a civil suit the case, which is scheduled to start on December 25, would go ahead regardless of whether Thaksin showed up in court or not. Thaksin and his wife Pojaman fled Thailand in August to live in self-exile in Britain days after Pojaman was sentenced to three years in jail on tax-evasion charges by a criminal court. The Supreme Court will also rule on October 21 whether Thaksin, as prime minister, abused his position by allowing his wife to bid for a premium plot of land in central Bangkok, which she acquired for what was deemed a bargain price of 772 million baht. The court has already issued arrest warrants for the couple for failing to show up to an earlier, postponed, hearing in the land sale case, which could see Thaksin sentenced to jail. Using populist policies to win the support of Thailand's urban and rural poor, and his personal wealth to win over a host of political allies, Thaksin dominated Thailand's political scene like no other prime minister before him between 2001 to 2006. Street protests against Thaksin, and signs that the political elite wanted him out, eventually paved the way for a military coup on September 19, 2006. Thailand's ruling Peoples Power Party is widely considered a proxy for Thaksin, but has failed to stop Thailand's judiciary from pursuing several corruption and abuse-of-power cases against the couple. Political analysts say whether these court actions are independent or politcally motivated, they add up to a possible crushing of Thaksin as a political force.