Thaksin, 74, denies any wrongdoing and has repeatedly pledged loyalty to the crown (File)
Bangkok:
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said on Saturday he was ready to face charges of insulting the monarchy, which marks a setback for a political heavyweight whose allies are currently in government.
The complaint, filed by the royalist military who ousted the government of his sister Yingluck Shinawatra, stems from an interview the influential tycoon gave to foreign media in 2015. Other accusations include violating a law on computer crimes.
Thaksin said he would meet with prosecutors on June 18, but was not worried about the case and was ready to fight it.
“It’s nothing. The case is baseless,” he told reporters.
Thaksin, 74, denies any wrongdoing and has repeatedly pledged loyalty to the crown, criticisms that are prohibited by Thailand’s controversial lese majeste law, one of the strictest of its kind in the world.
His case is the most high-profile of more than 270 prosecutions in recent years under the law, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years for each perceived insult against the royal family.
Thaksin founded the populist Pheu Thai party and his family’s parties have won all but one election since 2001, with three Shinawatra governments overthrown by coups d’état or court rulings.
The billionaire returned to Thailand in 2023 after 15 years of self-imposed exile, where he remained a central figure during repeated bouts of political upheaval.
He was convicted of abuse of power and conflicts of interest and sentenced to eight years in prison, later commuted to one year by the king. He was released on parole in February after just six months in detention.
Pheu Thai leads the current government, with Thaksin’s business ally Srettha Thavisin as prime minister and her daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, party chief.
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