A buoyed Thai opposition today launched an "all out final battle" to topple the government as five persons were injured in clashes with police, raising concerns that the country's prolonged political crisis could worsen.
Police fired teargas and used water cannon to disperse several protesters, including a senior monk, trying to force their way into government's Centre for Administration for Peace and Order (CAPO).
The protesters also attempted to occupy television stations and force them to air their announcements. Five protesters were injured by the teargas and sent to a nearby hospital.
The People's Democratic Reform Committee, which has been campaigning for six months for the ouster of the government, launched its "all-out final battle" after Yingluck Shinawatra was ordered to step down as Premier on Wednesday by the Constitutional Court over the illegal transfer of her security chief.
Another court yesterday indicted her for negligence over a controversial rice subsidy scheme and will face impeachment that could see her banned from politics for five years.
The two court decisions have bolstered the opposition which has been demanding Yingluck's ouster for months.
Though Yingluck has been dismissed, her Pheu Thai party's caretaker government remains in place and says it is working towards a July 20 election.
Court also dismissed nine members of Yingluck's government. Protesters now want to chase the remaining members of her cabinet from power.
To press for their demand, thousands of protesters -- mostly members of Bangkok's middle classes and activists from southern Thailand -- fanned out across the city after protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban issued instructions to overthrow the government and root out any traces of Shinawatra clan.
Suthep asked the Supreme Court and the senate speaker to form an interim government within a few days.
The protesters say Yingluck's government is controlled by her brother Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by the military as prime minister in a 2006 coup. They say Shinawatra family has corrupted Thailand's democracy and want an un-elected "people's council" to step in.
Government supporters, known as "red shirts", have also planned a mass rally tomorrow. Ruling Pheu Thai party asked the military to arrest Suthep for blatant breaches of the law, alleging he was a threat to national security.
The presence of both rival camps on the streets of the capital has raise fears of violence. So far, 25 people have been killed since the anti-government protesters began their campaign in November.
