Thai Court Suspends PM Prayuth, Stoking Intrigue as Vote Nears
- Prayuth Chan-Ocha has 15 days to respond to the petition
- Embattled leader has survived no-confidence votes, protests
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Eight years ago, then-army chief Prayuth Chan-Ocha staged a coup in Thailand and ripped up the constitution. On Tuesday, he was suspended as prime minister until a court determines whether he violated the new charter produced by his allies.
The surprise action by Thailand’s Constitutional Court puts Prayuth on the sidelines at least temporarily until it rules on whether he breached an eight-year term limit, which his opponents say began after he seized power in 2014. Prayuth stayed on as prime minister following a 2019 election under rules that heavily favored his military-aligned political group.