Thai Court Delivers Verdict in Thaksin Shinawatra's Royal Insult Case

A Thai criminal court is set to deliver a verdict in the high-profile royal insult case involving Thaksin Shinawatra. The former premier, influential in Thai politics, faces charges of lese-majeste after a 2015 interview. The outcome could impact the political landscape and the Shinawatra dynasty.

A Thai criminal court will issue a verdict on Friday in the highly publicized case of royal insult against former Premier Thaksin Shinawatra. This case marks the first in a series of rulings involving the influential Shinawatra family.

Thaksin, a central figure in Thai politics despite his official retirement, faces allegations of lese-majeste, a grave offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison. These charges stem from a media interview he gave in 2015 while in self-imposed exile. Thaksin maintains his innocence, citing his loyalty to the Thai king, and attributes the accusations to a complaint by the royalist military, which ousted him from power in 2006.

This case is the most prominent among over 280 prosecutions under the controversial lese-majeste law, which activists claim has been exploited to suppress dissent. Although Thaksin returned to Thailand in 2023 to serve a sentence reduced to one year, the Supreme Court will soon decide if his hospital stay constitutes time served.

(With inputs from agencies.)