Thai court to decide embattled PM Srettha's fate on August 14

By Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's Constitutional Court said on Wednesday it will hand down its verdict on Aug. 14 in a case that seeks the dismissal of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin for appointing to his cabinet a lawyer who served time in jail.

The case stems from a complaint from a group of former senators over the appointment of Pichit Chuenban, who has since resigned and was imprisoned briefly in 2008 for contempt of court over an alleged attempt to bribe court staff, which was never proven.

Real estate tycoon Srettha denies wrongdoing and says Pichit, a former lawyer for the politically powerful Shinawatra family, was thoroughly vetted and his appointment was above board.

The removal of Srettha could plunge Thailand into uncertainty and would require parliament to elect a new premier, potentially pitting his Pheu Thai Party against coalition partners in what could result in a shakeup of the governing alliance and a realignment of cabinet and policies.

"The Constitutional Court has considered and finds the case is a legal matter and there is sufficient evidence to decide the case," it said in a statement.

The verdict will come a week after another major decision by the same court, which will decide the fate of the hugely popular opposition Move Forward Party, the biggest force in parliament.

The progressive, anti-establishment Move Forward is accused by the election commission of undermining Thailand's system of governance over its campaign to amend a strict law that forbids insulting the royal family, under which hundreds of people have been prosecuted, some given jail terms of decades.

The rulings risk re-igniting a two-decade old struggle for power in Thailand between royalist, conservative forces allied with the powerful military and major political parties with mass appeal that have repeatedly been dissolved by courts or toppled in coups.

It comes as Srettha battles to revive an underperforming economy that has lagged behind its peers, with delays implementing his signature $13.8 billion handout scheme aimed at spurring growth and stubborn problems of household debt.

(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Martin Petty)