"I have been boxed one-sided for three to four months," he told the thousands of people who turned out to greet him.

"I wanted to fight back but my party stopped me. But I am a warrior who wants to go on the offensive. When I did fight back, my party members became angry with me,'' he told the crowd.

He spoke for half an hour before heading to Nakhon Ratchasima, Suphan Buri and Sa Kaew, the stronghold of Wang Nam Yen faction leader Snoh Thienthong, who has defected from Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai Party.

Thaksin told the rally his critics were mistaken when they accused him of tax evasion.

He did not break any law or evade taxes in the sale of Shin Corp, he said.

Thaksin told the crowd he has been trying to endure the attacks from his critics and that his party had prevented him from fighting back.

He would have hit back at his critics sooner if his party had not stopped him, he said.

An anti-government group held a rally in Khon Kaen yesterday but it attracted a much smaller crowd.

Somkiat Buanam-om, one of the speakers, alleged that some of those attending Thaksin's rally had been paid to do so.