INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
Princess Ubolratana's bid to run for prime minister was branded
"inappropriate"
The sister of Thailand's king has said she is "saddened" by the reaction to her attempted bid to become
the country's next prime minister.Princess Ubolratana was disqualified by the country's Election Commission - who are now also seeking
to dissolve the party that nominated her
Her unprecedented nomination broke with the tradition of the Thai royal family publicly staying out of politics.King Vajiralongkorn had
called her bid "extremely inappropriate"
Posting on her private Instagram account, the princess wrote: "I am sad that the sincere intention to work for the country and us Thais has
created a problem that shouldn't happen in this day and age."The photo she posted - of a scenic garden - also included the hashtag
#HowComeItsTheWayItIs.The announcement that Princess Ubolratana would stand for election sent shockwaves through Thai politics last
Friday.How did the nomination come about The US-educated Thai princess relinquished her royal title when she married an American man in 1972
She returned to Thailand in 2001 after they divorced and has maintained a quasi-celebrity status since - appearing on the entertainment
circuit and in music videos.She was nominated as a candidate for the upcoming general election by Thai Raksa Chart last week - a party
allied to divisive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra
The March vote will be the first since the current Prime Minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, took power in a 2014 military coup - overthrowing the
democratically-elected government.What was the reactionThe royal family and electoral officials condemned her candidacy almost immediately
after it was announced.The country's election panel said it had excluded Princess Ubolratana because "every member of the royal family
comes within the application of the same rule requiring the monarch to be above politics and to be politically neutral".Image
copyrightAFPImage caption
Thai Raksa Chart's leader Preechaphol Pongpanit defended their nomination
The stance echoed a palace statement, which said the "involvement of a high-ranking member of the royal family in politics is considered
extremely inappropriate".Analysis by Jonathan Head, TheIndianSubcontinent News, BangkokThe row over the princess has reignited old rivalries
Royalists have come out to accuse Mr Thaksin of once again trying to exploit the monarchy for his own ambitions
Frustrated supporters of the pro-Thaksin camp, who have been waiting for five years to demonstrate their voting power, fear their side will
be tarnished once again as a threat to the monarchy, in order to keep a military-dominated government in power
This is now bound to be a more heated election campaign.Read more from Jonathan here.Thai Raksa Chart's leader, Preechaphol Pongpanit, has
said his partydid everything "sincerely, with good intentions", but added: "Above us is His Majesty and the monarchy
We are ready to be investigated."The electoral commission confirmed on Wednesday that it was seeking to punish Thai Raksa Chart for
It described the party's nomination of the king's sister as "antagonistic toward the constitutional monarchy" and said it will ask the
country's Constitutional Court to consider dissolving them.Princess Ubolratana's latest post on Instagram will appear to some as a quiet
rebuke of the events of the past week
It's difficult to know just how much direct communication she has had with her brother about this since the fallout - but it's likely
she will now have to retreat from political life, no matter how she feels about it
