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Bangkok: Thailand's Supreme Court issued arrest warrants for exiled prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife on corruption charges yesterday.
The nine-judge panel Thaksin and his wife to be produced in court by September 25, the starting date of their trial, following their failure to meet yesterday's deadline for a voluntary appearance.
Extradition proceedings would be considered if Thaksin, who has kept a high profile by buying English Premier League club Manchester City from his exile home in London, did not appear by the new deadline, prosecutor Seksan Bangsomboon told reporters.
Violation of ban
Thaksin, ousted in a bloodless coup last year, and his wife Pojaman, face charges summarised as "misconduct of a government official and violation of a ban on state officials being party to transactions involving public interests".
They stem from Pojaman's 772 million baht (Dh91 million) purchase of land in central Bangkok from a unit of the Bank of Thailand in a 2003 auction at which other bidders dropped out. Thaksin was prime minister at the time.
The couple has denied the charges and Thaksin, who has said frequently to general disbelief in Thailand that he has quit politics, says he will not return to Thailand until democracy is restored.
Thaksin's lawyers argued the land case should be postponed to next year, or 30 days after a new government took office following a general election promised for December.
They argued Thaksin could not get a fair trial with the military in charge.
Thaksin's return before the polls could also cause trouble between supporters who swept him to two landslide election victories and opponents, they said.
"I have talked with my two clients and we agree that the best timing for them to return to fight the case is after the election," Thaksin's lawyer, Pichit Chuenban, said after the ruling. "We reiterate that that we have no desire to see disunity in the country."
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