Thailand’s Election Commission is investigating Prime Ministerial frontrunner Pita Limjaroenrat over his alleged ownership of media company shares, AFP reported Monday.

The commission will investigate whether Pita held media company shares while standing as a Thai House of Representatives candidate, which is against the law. Pita has downplayed the problem, claiming that the company, ITV, is not a functioning media business and that his stakes in the corporation have since been transferred.

The Election Commission decided to examine Pita’s eligibility to run for parliament after six complaints were lodged against Pita, which the Election Commission initially rejected, accusing him of breaking Section 42 (3) and Section 151 of the Organic Act on the Election of Members of the House of Representatives.

Section 42 (3) prohibits owners and shareholders in newspapers or “mass media businesses” from standing for election, and Section 151 makes it a criminal offense for an individual to stand for election if the person knows they are disqualified. Violations of Section 151 can be punished by up to ten years in prison, a fine of 200,000 Baht (approximately 5,765 USD) and twenty years’ disenfranchisement.

In the Thai national elections held last month, Pita’s Move Forward Party (MFP) won the most seats as citizens rejected the army-affiliated parties that ruled Thailand for nearly ten years. With a platform of institutional change that included lowering the army’s political influence, dismantling monopolies and revisiting contentious legislation that bans insulting the monarchy, the party gained a significant following among the youth and in Bangkok.