Thai court dismisses PM Srettha for violating constitution

“I’m confident in my honesty … I feel sorry, but I’m not saying I disagree with the ruling,” he said at a press conference shortly after the ruling.

The verdict signals political uncertainty for a country that has seen multiple coups, the last being in 2014 when the military seized power.

Although a young, reformist party won the most votes and seats in last year’s general election, the military-appointed senate did not allow the Move Foward party to form a government.

The opposition Pheu Thai party which was the second-biggest winner agreed to form a coalition without Move Forward, and put forward Mr Sretta as their PM candidate.

His appointment ended nine years of military rule in Thailand.

On Wednesday, the court voted five to four to remove Srettha from office. The court’s ruling is final and cannot be appealed.

Earlier this May, the court had accepted a petition filed by some 40 senators asking to remove Srettha from his position for his appointment of Pichit Chuenban – who previously been sentenced to six months in jail for an attempted bribery case.