Kuala Lumpur:Thailands Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej was on Tuesday asked to step down after the Constitutional Court here ruled that he had violated a conflict-of-interest law by hosting cooking shows on television while holding office.

"The defendant has violated Article 267 of the constitution, and his position as prime minister has ended," ruled Chat Chonlaworn, the head of the nine-judge panel.

The judgement was received by loud cheers from the Prime ministers opponents who have been protesting for days demanding his resignation.

Chat ordered that the Samak Sundaravej Cabinet will remain in a caretaker position until a new administration was chosen.

Seventy three-year-old Samak, who is passionate about food and cooking, hosted a popular television cooking show, Tasting and Complaining, for seven years before becoming prime minister earlier this year.

He continued to appear on the cookery shows on several occasions leading to the violation of law barring private employment while holding the office.

"His employment at the (TV) company can be considered an employment," Chat said. Samak had said he was not paid to do the show but was only given transport cost and payment for the ingredients used in the cooking show.

Thailands political crisis began in early 2006 when a group of royalists and union activists, calling themselves the Peoples Alliance for Democracy, accused then premier Thaksin Shinawatra of corruption.

The opposition led to a military coup which ousted Thaksin. Elections were held in 2007 and won by a coalition of pro-Thaksin Samaks Peoples Power Party and five other parties.
Source : DNA