Thailand’s top court announced on Thursday that former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra will stand trial for negligence related to a rice subsidy program overseen by her ousted government that lost billions of dollars, a move likely to deepen the long-running political crisis in the military-ruled nation.
Supreme Court judge Weerapol Tangsuwan said that a nine-member judicial panel studied documents submitted by prosecutors from the Attorney General’s office last month and found the case was within the court’s jurisdiction.
The case is expected to begin May 19.
Ms. Yingluck was removed from office for abuse of power in May last year, days before a military coup. The charge against the country’s first female premier, concern her role in scheme that paid farmers above market prices for rice and cost Thailand billions of dollars.
If found guilty, Ms. Yingluck would face a maximum of 10 years in jail.
