Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit was charged last year after he posted a video in which he questioned whether Thailand was leaning too heavily on Siam Bioscience – closely linked to the Thai royal family – for its vaccination campaign.

The 43-year-old, who founded the now-banned and hugely popular anti-establishment Future Forward Party, also faces charges relating to computer crimes.

On Monday a judge ruled that the court would indict Thanathorn for lese majeste, which can carry a sentence of 15 years imprisonment per charge, and granted bail to the billionaire with a 90,000 baht (US$2,600) guarantee.

Speaking outside the court, Thanathorn said he believed the case was "politically motivated" and vowed to contest the charges.

"It is clear that I am one of the key opposition [figures] and I think the objective is to silence me, to make the public afraid. So if we can keep silent, keep our mouths shut, they win," he said.

Thanathorn is the highest profile individual to be hit by recent lese majeste allegations. 

He joins a raft of activists who have also been charged since a prodemocracy movement rose up in 2020 — with some of the most prominent figures calling for controversial royal reforms.

Before it was disbanded, Thanathorn's Future Forward Party was Thailand's third largest, drawing millions of supporters who were attracted to his antiestablishment platform during the 2019 election.

But they were felled by swift legal action, which saw its top executives, including the young billionaire, banned from politics and the party dissolved.

Siam Bioscience is owned by the Crown Property Bureau, which manages the royal family's multi-billion-dollar fortune.

Indicted for a sticker

Last month, a man was sentenced to two years in jail for violating the country's tough royal defamation laws by putting a sticker on a portrait of Thailand's king during 2020's huge democracy rallies. 

It was the first sentencing from lese majeste charges related to the protests, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said, when thousands marched demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha and made unprecedented calls for reform to the nation's untouchable monarchy.

But the movement petered out as COVID-19 case numbers surged and authorities detained most of its leaders.

Narin, whose last name was withheld, is among some 160 activists hit with criminal charges under the tough royal defamation laws.

The criminal court jailed him for two years for violating Section 112 of the Thai Criminal Code after he posted a GuKult sticker on King Rama X's portrait outside Bangkok's Supreme Court during a rally in September 2020.

GuKult is a satirical and antiestablishment Facebook page.

"This could be an example of prosecuting the other 112 cases going forward," said TLHR's Kittisak Kongthong, defending the 31-year-old.

He noted the case had been "accelerated", with the court ordering "no testimonies of academics and the plaintiff."

Narin's sentence was reduced from three years to two. He was released on a 100,000 baht  bail bond. He is still facing at least two further lese majeste charges, according to his lawyer.

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