The bitter political battle in Thailand between the red-shirt supporters of the Shinawatra family and yellow-shirt supporters of conservative forces is reflected in how Thais are reacting to the latest intrigue.

Last Friday, the ousted former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra failed to appear in court to hear the verdict in her trail over a controversial rice subsidy scheme while in power from August 2011 to May 2014.

When and how Yingluck left Thailand remains a mystery, as is her current whereabouts.

The Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Public Office Holders has issued an arrest warrant for Yingluck and rescheduled announcement of the verdict for Sept. 27.

"If she were found convicted, I think she made the right decision to leave the country because she could expect no justice," said Pechawat Wattanapongsirigul, 59, a red-shirt group leader in the northern city of Chiang Mai, a Shinawatra family powerbase.

But Kasit Piromya, a former foreign minister in a government led by the Democrat Party, the bitter rival of the Pheu Thai party headed by Yingluck and earlier by her billionaire businessman brother Thaksin Shinawatra, said fleeing the country was to insult the Thai judiciary.

"Yingluck has been under the judicial process all along. I myself also have a (political) case and have been fighting under the juridical system because I respect the law," said Kasit, who is a defendant in a politically related case of seizing the Don Mueang and Suvarnbhumi international airports serving Bangkok.

If Yingluck disappears, "it means that she does not respect the law. It indicates she has no sense of duty as a party leader and former prime minister," Kasit told Kyodo News.

Similar comments were voiced even by some Yingluck backers.

"We thought Yingluck would fight on to prove her innocence like she always said. Some supporters and I who turned up at the court last Friday were disappointed and hurt," said Pichit Tamul, a leader of the "Daeng (red) Chiang Mai" group.

Pichit believes Yingluck's failure to show up at the court threatens the Pheu Thai's credibility and its political future.

"It is better not to have anyone from Shinawatra family leading the party anymore, otherwise the deep-rooted political conflicts will never end," Pichit said.

However Pechawat dismissed the possibility that Yingluck's "escape" ahead of the Aug. 25 verdict will hurt the Pheu Thai Party.

"Although Yingluck skipped the court session, the Pheu Thai will continue to maintain its popularity in many parts of Thailand," Pechawat said. He added red-shirt leaders are now awaiting directions from Yingluck's exiled brother, the former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who remains the de facto leader of the Pheu Thai Party despite living in self-imposed exile in Dubai for nearly 10 years.

Thaksin was on trial himself when he fled Thailand in 2008 under the pretext of leaving to attend the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Naetdao Taepin, a 40-year-old noodle shop owner in Chiang Mai's San Kampaeng district where Yingluck and Thaksin were born, said Yingluck's move greatly surprised her.

"She may be found guilty in neglecting her duty, but running away from the court is not what I expected," Naetdao said.

But asked if she would continue to support the Pheu Thai Party if it is not led by a Shinawatra family member, she said without hesitation she will.

"The party is going to have my support because of its beneficial public policies. Take this for example: I paid only 30 baht ($0.90) for childbirth under a universal healthcare program initiated by Thaksin," Naetdao recalled.

For many Thais, the most intriguing aspect of Yingluck's disappearance is the question of whether the country's ruling junta played a role, possibly to avoid the civil strife expected following a guilty verdict.

"It is a question that the National Council for Peace and Order (or junta) must answer," said Suriyasai Katasila, a spokesman for the People's Alliance for Democracy, a yellow-shirt group.

"If this escape was done with help from the NCPO, then what were they thinking? And how is it going to be from now on? This is what many people including myself wonder."

The People's Alliance for Democracy was particularly politically active from 2005 to 2009 -- its main goal being to chase Thaksin Shinawatra from power.

Yingluck was removed from office on May 7, 2014, when the Constitutional Court found her guilty of abuse of power.

Two weeks later, the Royal Thai Armed Forces seized power in a coup led by army commander Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, who continues to rule the country of nearly 70 million as the head of a junta despite resigning from the military.