Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra will not appear at the Supreme Court this Friday when judges examine whether his stay at Police General Hospital counted as serving time for his prison sentence.
His lawyer, Winyat Chatmontree, confirmed on Wednesday that the former prime minister was not required to attend the hearing scheduled for June 13, as he had not been summoned by the court.
The session will be held by the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions.
Winyat added that Thaksin had requested a 30-day extension to submit relevant documents, and the court has rescheduled the deadline to June 23. Despite Thaksin’s absence, his legal team will attend Friday’s hearing to present clarifications on his behalf.
In April, the Supreme Court agreed to examine whether Thaksin’s months-long hospital stay following his return to Thailand qualified as serving his sentence.
The move came after the court dismissed a petition by former Democrat MP Charnchai Issarasenarak, who argued that being admitted to Police General Hospital did not equate to imprisonment.
Thaksin returned to Thailand on August 22, 2023, after more than 15 years in self-exile.
On the same day, he was sentenced to eight years in prison across three cases, later reduced to one year through royal clemency, for offences including abuse of power and conflict of interest during his tenure before the 2006 coup.
Although he was initially taken to Bangkok Remand Prison, he was transferred to Police General Hospital just 13 hours later. He remained at the hospital until he was paroled in early 2024, sparking public criticism and accusations of preferential treatment.
Opposition figures questioned the legitimacy of his hospitalisation, especially given his reportedly improved health shortly after his release.
The Medical Council of Thailand later found that Thaksin was not critically ill during his stay and took disciplinary action against several doctors involved in the case.
During a recent censure debate, opposition MPs revisited the issue, demanding transparency and questioning whether the law had been applied fairly.
Officials had earlier cited patient confidentiality and potential risks to Thaksin’s health as reasons for not transferring him back to prison.
