The Move Forward Party says it will decide the fate of a Bangkok MP accused of assaulting his girlfriend after a disciplinary panel reports its findings.
The investigation into the incident involving Sirin Sanguansi has been accelerated to find a solution as soon as possible, party secretary-general Chaithawat Tulathon said on Friday.
As soon as the disciplinary committee concludes its work, the findings would be forwarded to party executives, he said.
Mr Sirin, who was elected to represent the Thawi Watthana constituency, has been accused of assaulting his 26-year-old girlfriend while driving to a golf course in Sri Racha district of Chon Buri on June 23.
The woman, who said she had been dating the MP for about a month, said she was punched in the face and dragged out of the car by her hair before her phone was thrown onto the roadside.
She filed a complaint at the Bo Win police station in Sri Racha on Thursday and posted the complaint and photos of bruises on her body on Instagram.
Mr Sirin on Thursday apologised to his girlfriend, her family and the public on Facebook, saying he was ready to face legal action and disciplinary action from the party.
On Friday, Mr Sirin and his girlfriend were scheduled to report to the Bo Win police station at 10am for talks about settling the dispute. However, they failed to appear and about 10 reporters waiting there finally left around 1pm.
The embattled MP could not be contacted as he had turned off his mobile phone.
Police said it was possible that the pair wanted to reach some kind of compromise in the case.
Simple physical assault used to involve a fine of 500 baht, which would be doubled if a person was struck twice. However, the law now calls for a maximum fine of 10,000 baht for one blow and 20,000 baht for a second, officers said.
The incident prompted the United Thai Nation Party (UTN) to launch a social media campaign calling for an end to violence against women.
Move Forward earlier ordered one of its list-MPs to step down after she was charged with impaired driving shortly after the May 14 election. It is not known whether Mr Sirin will also be asked to step aside.
