Thaksin hits Sondhi with a fifth lawsuit
 The Nation
November 24 , 2005 - Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday filed a fifth suit against his critic Sondhi Limthongkul for criminal defamation.
The criminal litigation follows the civil case on the same charge filed last week demanding Bt1 billion in damages.
In the latest action, the Civil Court agreed to issue a gag order against Sondhi pending the judicial review.
Lawyer Noppadol Meewan, who is also in charge of another criminal defamation suit, lodged the plaintiff’s criminal writ. Lead lawyer Thana Benjathikul will focus on the three civil suits.
In the writ, the plaintiff argues that Sondhi has made slanderous remarks by alleging that Thaksin relied on dishonest means to secure state concessions for the ThaiCom satellite and the GSM 900 mobile-phone service.
Sondhi aired his views in a series of his mobile talk shows, “Thailand Weekly”, between September 23 and last Friday. The shows were held at Thammasat University auditorium and Lumpini Park and broadcast via the Internet and satellite channel ASTV.
The plaintiff named Sondhi’s co-host Sarocha Pornudomsak as co-defendant and demanded an apology be published on the front page of 14 newspapers for three consecutive days.
The Criminal Court has yet to schedule a date to rule on cause.
For the earlier criminal suit, the court is to rule on March 6 whether the case merits judicial review. Thaksin has charged that Sondhi and Sarocha defamed him by portraying him as usurping royal powers relating to the appointment of the Supreme Patriarch.
In a related development, the Civil Court is scheduled to rule today on whether to cancel its gag order against Sondhi.
Last Friday, Thaksin’s lawyer Thana Benjathikul sought and received a court order to muzzle Sondhi pending the judicial review. Sondhi appealed the decision on Monday.
Meanwhile, Yasothon provincial court will today decide whether to approve police investigators’ request for an arrest warrant against Sondhi and Sarocha.
Lt-Colonel Thammarak Atthajak, an inspector at Yasothon Provincial Police Bureau, asked the court yesterday to approve the warrant against the two.
Thammarak is in charge of the case in which Lt Col Samniang Luajiangkham, deputy commander of Yasothon’s Muang district police station, accused Sondhi and Sarocha of lese majesty during their previous talk shows.
However, police in Bangkok yesterday denied that government critic Sondhi faced imminent arrest on a lese majesty charge, saying their procedures were far from complete.
Sondhi faces two police investigations into alleged lese majesty offences.
The first is under the jurisdiction of Provincial Police Region 3; the second is being handled by the Central Investigation Bureau.
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