Thai opposition approaches court to annul snap polls

The opposition in Thailand today approached a court to annul Sunday's controversial snap polls, the latest in a host of problems facing the caretaker government of beleaguered Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
The Democrat Party filed a petition in the Constitutional Court to invalidate the protest-hit polls on February 2.
Yingluck is being investigated by the Election Commission for alleged abuse of authority during campaigning and by the National Anti-Corruption Commission for alleged dereliction of duty involving a rice-pledging scheme.
The opposition's petition seeks to "nullify the election, disband (the ruling) Puea Thai party and ban its party executives from office for five years", Democrat Party lawyer Virat Kalayasiri told reporters outside the court.

The Democrat Party boycotted the polls and anti-government protesters forced the closure of hundreds of polling stations, disenfranchising over 10 million voters and forcing the cancellation of balloting at several places.
Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday a legal challenge to the "illegitimate" poll would be mounted in the Constitutional Court as it "did not reflect the intention of the constitution or the people".

The government claimed "victory" in the polls, with the Pheu Thai party bent on confronting protesters.
The Election Commission put the unofficial turnout in the polls at 45.8 per cent, but opposition leader Suthep Thaugsuban claimed the turnout in the capital was the lowest ever for a general election.

Protesters led by the People's Democratic Reforms Committee (PDRC) continued their marches across Bangkok and pledged to shut more government buildings to press their demand for Yingluck to step down.
Fresh polling will be held for those who could not exercise their franchise and in advance voting on January 26.
Protesters have been holding rallies across Bangkok and have blocked major intersections for the past three months, calling for Yingluck's government to quit and an unelected People's Council to be formed to carry out reforms.
The protesters accuse Yingluck of acting as a proxy for her fugitive brother, ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra who was ousted in a coup in 2006. He lives in self-imposed exile in Dubai to escape a jail term on a corruption conviction.

At least 10 people have been killed and hundreds injured in clashes since the opposition rallies began last year. The unrest was triggered by an amnesty bill that could have facilitated Thaksin's return to the country.
The recent violence is the worst political bloodshed in Thailand since 2010, when protests by pro-Thaksin "Red Shirts" left more than 90 dead and nearly 1,900 injured.