A 65-year-old abbot and four other junior monks were expelled from a temple in Nakhon Ratchasima after they were found drinking alcohol inside their living quarters.
Over 100 residents in Nakhon Ratchasima's Kham Thale So converge on a temple on Wednesday night to expel the abbot and his junior monks for drinking alcohol in the temple compound. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)
Police rushed to Wat Nong Krathumthammaram in Kham Thale So district on Wednesday night and found more than 100 angry residents surrounding the kuti, or dormitory, of monks demanding their expulsion, said Pol Capt Prawat Pudnin, a deputy crime suppression inspector at Kham Thale So police station.
The in tambon Bueng-or residents accused the monks of turning their living quarters into a pub.
However, the door of the kuti was locked. abbot Luang Phor Perm Khantipalor and his close monks refused to come out. Police eventually persuaded the abbot to open the door for talks. After a half hour, the emerged.
The officers found the abbot and four other monks drunk, with two empty liquor bottles lying nearby.
They were taken to a temple hall where police conducted breath-alcohol tests in front of disgruntled villagers. All five monks tested positive for liquor use.
Luang Phor Perm admitted to having drinking fermented Thai rice whisky, claiming he could not resist persuasion from his junior monks. He claimed he drank only one glass of the lao khao.
However, the abbot confessed it was not the first time he had drunk alcohol with fellow monks. He said he never thought locals would try to expel him.
Monks at a temple in Nakhon Ratchasima wait for breath alcohol tests after five monks, including the abbot, are found drunk in their living quarters late Wednesday night. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)
He kept begging for mercy from resident to not defrock him. He said he would move to another temple if they wanted.
Saichon Kisantia, the Bueng-or village chief, said residents had been aware of the drinking habits of the abbot and his fellow monks for several years and they had tried in vain to get them to stop. However, the abbot ignored them and refused to kick the habit.
The locals agreed not to pursue charges against the five monks if they left the temple immediately, said the tambon chief.
The protesters dispersed after the monks packed their belongings to leave the temple late Wednesday night. Only three monks who remained sober now remain.