However, the authority to sign off on nullifying the deeds now rests with Chamnanwit Terat, the current deputy permanent secretary for interior who is supervising the Department of Lands (DoL), said Anutin, who also serves as Bhumjaithai’s leader.
Mr Chamnanwit must make a decision on the matter. Any failure to take action will constitute a dereliction of duty, violating Section 157 of the Criminal Code, Anutin said, reports the Bangkok Post.
The deputy permanent secretary for the interior has until the end of September to nullify the title deeds before he retires, Mr Anutin added.
He said Mr Chamnanwit has little choice because the Council of State has ruled that the Pathum Thani land is a monastic property that cannot be sold or transferred.
On Wednesday, the DoL insisted the title deeds for the controversial monastic plot in Pathum Thani, which houses the Alpine Golf Club and a residential complex, have yet to be nullified as reported by the media.
Any nullification of the private ownership of the Alpine land would have reverted the status of the plot to that of a monastic property. If so, residents in the housing complex and Alpine Golf & Sports Club Co would have been entitled to receive appropriate compensation, according to an article published on Tuesday by the Isra News agency.
The company’s shares are currently held by the Shinawatra family, with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra formerly holding B22.41 million before transferring them to her mother, Khunying Potjaman na Pombejra, as of Sept 4 last year.
Citing a source at the Ministry of Interior, the news agency said Mr Chada, who at the time oversaw the DoL, on Sept 3 of last year signed the order to have the Alpine land title deeds nullified shortly before he stepped down from the post.