Somkiat Pongpaiboon, a key leader of the yellow shirts and an MP in the ruling Democrat Party, is suffering from partial paralysis caused by a brain infarction, or stroke, his colleagues said yesterday.
"The condition is not too bad. He's still healthy and undergoing therapy while recovering," he said.
Somkiat's health problem was disclosed yesterday when his lawyer and fellow Democrat MP Virat Kalayasiri cited it in requesting postponement of a Criminal Court hearing in the defamation case Somkiat filed against opposition Pheu Thai MP Karun Hosakul.
Virat yesterday said Somkiat was being treated at Chulalongkorn Hospital for the brain infarction. He told the court that due to his health problem, Somkiat could not show up for a hearing by the complainant's witnesses.
The court agreed to the request and postponed the hearing to September 28, the lawyer said.
The defamation case stemmed from a dispute between Somkiat and Karun during a parliamentary meeting in early 2008. In a phone interview with the media, Karun accused Somkiat of swearing at him during their argument, which caused him to assault Somkiat physically.
The allegation prompted Somkiat to file the lawsuit against Karun.