The Department of Special Investigation's (DSI) special cases board will announce on Thursday if it will launch an investigation into alleged collusion in last year's Senate election, said Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong.
The board, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai, was initially expected to make a decision last Tuesday but postponed it to allow for further review.
While declining to discuss the outcome, Pol Col Tawee, also a member of the board, said there is extensive additional evidence that the media has not yet been made party to.
The minister was referring to a list of 1,200 names shared among senators on Sunday.
The list is said to contain the names of Senate candidates and senators set to be questioned as witnesses in the case.
Pol Col Tawee said on Monday that the document had not been leaked by the DSI but was found on the day of the Senate election at Muang Thong Thani estate in Nonthaburi province, where the round of final, national-level voting for senators was conducted.
He also stressed that being on the list does not imply collusion or wrongdoing by those candidates.
Following the leaked document, DSI spokesman Pol Maj Gen Woranan Srilam said the agency was aware of the document being circulated but denied it was leaked by the DSI.
On the Council of State (CoS) concerns over the DSI's authority to investigate, Pol Col Tawee downplayed the issue.
"The CoS was speaking in principle about non-interference of independent public agencies," he said.
Petition, probe request
He also dismissed a Senate petition calling for an investigation against himself and the DSI chief for alleged abuse of authority over the DSI probe into the Senate election, insisting the DSI's move was not politically motivated.
Previously, Pol Col Tawee said that some of the poll-related allegations involved criminal offences listed under the Criminal Code, implying that they should be handled by the DSI.
A group of unsuccessful candidates on Monday asked parliament president Wan Muhamad Noor Matha to launch an ethics probe against the senators seeking Pol Col Tawee's removal from office.
They claimed that the senators' move could obstruct the DSI's investigation into vote fixing.
In a related development, a motion on justice administration and enforcement is expected to be tabled with the Senate for consideration on Tuesday.
The motion, prepared by Sen Chattawat Saengphet, is said to centre on the roles of the Justice Ministry and the DSI amid criticism over their handling of high-profile cases.
