Thaksin faces arrest on his return to Thailand

Bangkok, Dec 27 (UNI) Ousted former Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra will be arrested on corruption charges as soon as he arrives here, prosecutors said here today.

People Power party (PPP)'s imminent rise to power would not affect the case against Mr Thaksin, senior official at the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), Sampan Sarathana said.

''As soon as he sets foot in Thailand, which he claims will be sometime between February and April of next year, he will face police arrest. An arrest warrant has already been issued for him a long time ago,'' the Bangkok Post quoted him, as saying.

Earlier, Mr Thaksin, who has been living in self-exile in England since after the coup, said he would not return to the country until he was sure about a fair trial.

However, Thai government was still in the process of striking up an extradition deal with the British government to have the ousted PM back in the country, Mr Sampan added.

Corruption and cronyism in Thaksin Government were cited as a rationale for the September 19, 2006 coup d'etat.

But, on December 23 election this year, the PPP was the strongest party with 232 of the 480 seats in the lower house of Parliament.

The party is all set to form a coalition government.

UNI