Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra jailed upon return after 15 years in exile

Former Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand on Tuesday after 15 years in exile and was promptly imprisoned; however, with his party poised to retake power, his time in prison may be shortened, AFP reported Tuesday.

The polarising billionaire arrived in a private jet at Bangkok's Don Mueang airport at At 9am (0200 GMT), where he was greeted by hordes of raucous "Red Shirt" supporters waving signs and shouting songs.

The 74-year-old momentarily came out of the terminal building and saluted fans while bowing and presenting a floral garland to the portrait of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Then, the former Manchester City owner was taken to the Supreme Court, where he was ordered to serve eight years for three convictions he passed in his absence, including one related to his former Shin Corp company, another related to a bank loan, and a lottery case.

Thaksin's return came hours before business tycoon Srettha Thavisin's expected appointment as prime minister by the Pheu Thai party to Thailand's parliament which has led to speculation that a backroom deal has been made to grant Thaksin leniency, as his party is on the verge of assuming power.

"Welcome back to Thailand daddy. My father has now arrived in Thailand safely and has entered the legal process," his daughter Paetongtarn wrote on Instagram, with a photo of Thaksin with his three children and seven grandchildren in the airport's VIP lounge.

Red Shirts' support

Thaksin has said he was willing to face justice in order to return home and see his grandchildren — though he has long maintained that the criminal charges against him are politically motivated.

"I would like to request permission to return to live on Thai soil and share the air with my fellow Thai brothers and sisters," he posted Monday on Twitter, which has been rebranded as X.

For all his long absence from the country, Thaksin remains Thailand's most influential — and controversial — politician of modern times.

His career has included two election victories, defeat in a coup, criminal charges and long years of self-imposed exile.

Loved by the rural poor for policies including cheap healthcare and the minimum wage, he is reviled by the pro-military and royalist elite who saw his rule as corrupt, authoritarian and a threat to Thai social order.

Parties linked to Thaksin have dominated elections since 2001 — until this year when the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) won the most seats.

Hundreds of Red Shirts waited through the night at the airport to welcome him with songs and banners — most decked out in their usual crimson colours.

"I am a real Red Shirt — whenever they want our support, I will always be there for them," Karuna Wantang, 70, a retired bureaucrat from Nongkai, in the country's northeast, told AFP.

"I don't only like him but I love him."