Bangkok: The Constitutional Court has dismissed a petition from the Prime Minister and the President of the Senate seeking the removal of Dr. Saran Boonbaichaiyapruk as the chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
According to Thai News Agency, the court unanimously rejected the petition, ruling that Dr. Saran's rights were not violated, and the conditions outlined in Article 213 of the Constitution were not met. The petition had been filed by Mr. Metha Masakhao, acting secretary-general of the Committee for the Promotion of Democracy (CPD), against seven key figures including Professor Dr. Saran Boonbaichaiyapruk, Mr. Trairat Wiriyasirikul, and various government officials.
Mr. Masakhao alleged that the respondents had failed to adhere to legal protocols, allowing Dr. Saran to continue as NBTC chairman in violation of the Broadcasting and Television Broadcasting Act. He claimed that this amounted to a misuse of state power and a breach of relevant sections of the Constitution, which infringed on his rights and freedoms.
However, the court determined that the petition and associated documents did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that Mr. Metha's rights or freedoms were directly violated. As a result, the court concluded that the case did not satisfy the necessary criteria under Section 46 of the Constitutional Court Procedure Act B.E. 2561 (2018), and Mr. Metha was not eligible to file under Section 213 of the Constitution.