Former prime ministers Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra will not travel to India to meet former Pheu Thai MPs for a planned post-Buddhist Lent merit-making ceremony on Oct 25, an aide to Ms Yingluck said on Wednesday.
Ms Yingluck, her brother and other family members will still stay in Japan, and instead of India, they plan to visit a country in the Southeast Asian region. The country they plan to visit was not disclosed.
- Earlier report: Thaksin to meet Thai allies in India
The source close to Ms Yingluck brushed aside reports and rumours that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) may have put pressure on the siblings to cancel their trip to India, where a large number of Pheu Thai members, former MPs, cabinet members and red-shirt leaders are reportedly expected to meet them in a tod kathin ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Bodhgaya.
The source said the India trip had not been included in Ms Yingluck’s itinerary from the beginning when she reported her visit to Japan to the NCPO.
The ex-Pheu Thai MPs may have told the press about the India trip as they wanted the two ex-premiers to attend the merit-making ceremony, the source explained.
The denial came amid reports that the junta lobbied for the cancellation of the trip through Pol Col Wathanyu Witthayapalothai, who is accompanying Ms Yingluck on the trip. They are concerned the meeting with Pheu Thai and red-shirt members will be “politicised”. Ms Yingluck and Thaksin are reportedly cooperating with the NCPO’s request and are planning to visit another country after they leave Japan.