MONGKOL BANGPRAPA

Invalid ballot papers in constituency 14 (Don Muang) sky-rocketed to over 21,000 yesterday, prompting the Election Commission to consider launching an investigation against former Thai Rak Thai candidate Karun Hosakul.

The total number of invalid ballots stood at 21,782, said EC secretary-general Ekkachai Varunprapa.

The Thai Rak Thai candidate was disqualified by the Supreme Court from the race days before the election because of his questionable educational background.

The EC first suspected that the invalid ballots were cast by those who voted in advance before Mr Karun's candidacy was cancelled.

But according to the secretary-general, after running checks the agency found that only 2,731 voters had cast their ballots in advance, of which 1,571 of the invalid papers were party-list ballots.

The EC would have to investigate Mr Karun who had earlier announced he would urge voters to cast an invalid ballot to protest his ouster from the race, he said, adding that urging people to make ballots invalid was against electoral law.