Social critic Prawase Wasi yesterday urged the government to set up an independent panel of "neutral" members to prove the four charges cited by the coup makers to topple the administration of deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

He pointed out that many Thaksin supporters would never accept the "justice" the military-backed government was supposed to give to the former prime minister.

"The society is still divided into two camps [pro- and anti-Thaksin supporters] even after the coup," Prawase said. "National reconciliation won't come true if the whole truth doesn't come out."

Prawase suggested the coup leaders establish an independent panel to prove as soon as possible that their main charges against the Thaksin administration had a solid ground to back the legitimacy of the coup.

"The people don't tend to believe the government's investigation because they will say that it seized power so it could claim any charges against the deposed Thaksin government," he said.

However, Prawase refused to say whom his "neutral" people were.

The coup makers alleged the Thaksin government had committed massive corruption, interfered in the works of independent agencies, caused social division and insulted His Majesty the King.

Prawase spoke out while the ruling body, the Council for National Security (CNS), has been attacked over its failure to prove if all the charges were true - particularly the Assets Examination Committee -which is scrutinising graft scandals of the deposed government.

Meanwhile, former Democrat Party leader Banyat Bantadtan warned the CNS not to follow in Thaksin's footsteps by abusing power to benefit itself, and that the coup leaders should urgently convince the public they were sincere in solving the national crisis.

Banyat pointed that the coup leaders should withdraw military officials who recently were appointed to several state-enterprise executive boards, otherwise they could be seen as no different from those who they had ousted from power.

In the meantime, Thai Rak Thai leader Chaturon Chaisang insisted that his claim about the party's former MPs being intimidated by some military officials was true.

"Some military leaders have kept denying this because they have no information about the incidents," he said.

Chaturon claimed on Wednesday that soldiers were stalking some of the party's former MPs who were being forced to reveal who they had been talking to and what was said.

Some senior military officials had also invited the members to dine with them at luxury hotels, but left them to pay all of the bills including the room rent, he said.

In Maha Sarakham, Chaturon claimed, military officials forced a former MP to cancel all social activities he had organised at a hotel, which caused serious financial damage.

In response to Chaturon's allegation, Defence Minister General Boonrawd Somtas asked the Thai Rak Thai Party to provide clear evidence for its allegation that military officials intimidated its former MPs in northern and northeastern provinces.

"The charge should be more specific about the names of the people, so we can investigate if the intimidation took place," he said.

Earlier, the Army denied that any soldiers were involved in any illegal action.

Supreme Commander General Boonsang Niampradit believed most soldiers were well-behaved but "a few" were bad and would eventually be punished.