Thai court sets date to rule on PM

Thailand's Constitutional Court said Tuesday it will rule on May 7 whether to remove Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra from office on abuse of power charges, a verdict that could plunge the country deeper into crisis. The premier appeared at the court to deny the allegation, filed by a group of senators who said that then-national security chief Thawil Pliensri was replaced after her 2011 election for the benefit of her party. But the court's president Charoon Intachan said the nine-member bench had heard enough evidence and was ready to rule. "The hearing is over... the court has decided to rule on May 7 at noon," he said, according to AFP.