It is ironic, as laughable as it is sad. Facetiously, dramatically and almost jokingly, justice was literally seen to be done via the live streaming of an event last week when local residents and reporters stormed into a monk's quarters and found a woman hiding there at night.
Is this a serious charge? Setting aside the philosophical debate on whether celibacy is essential for enlightenment, it would seem so.
The monastic rule says a Buddhist's monk is supposed to maintain his celibacy and a failure to do so is punishable by the maximum penalty of expulsion from the monkhood.
In this case, however, what should be a solemn affair turned out to be more of a comedy of errors played out in public.
As entertaining as it was, with more twists and turns than an investigative drama, the event raised a few questions.
Why did people turn to a "shaman'' instead of police or monastic authorities when they suspected a monk of misconduct? Should unrestricted live streaming be acceptable in investigating anybody? Has it also become the preferred medium for journalists?
More importantly, does the fact that more and more people are resorting to social media to find justice for themselves suggest failure in the real process?
The event in question unfolded late last week when a group of local villagers called on Mor Pla, a celebrity shaman who proclaimed to help victims of supernatural powers, to probe the monk who served as the abbot of a Samut Prakan temple.
The villagers claimed CCTV footage showed a woman entering the monk's quarters in the evening who did not come out after several hours.
The shaman, over 100 villagers and reporters went knocking on the monk's doors.
The monk resisted their request to search his quarters. His supporters started to show up and threatened to clash with the villagers. Finally, police arrived at the scene and the monk agreed to the search.
Suspicion grew after a woman's headband was found on the monk's bed. His attempt to explain away the awkward item was unfortunately hilarious. The monk said the headband, adorned with some glittering beads, was his.
He claimed to have used it to relieve headaches. As reporters pressed on, the monk demonstrated by wearing the headband around his shaved head. No doubt the image turned into popular internet memes.
The event took on a B-grade movie turn as the villagers and press members found a woman's underwear on the first floor of the monk's abode.
Then came the climax. As reporters removed some monk's robes hanging on a nearby rack, a woman was seen curling behind it. Parts of her legs, exposed from her hiding under the stairs, have become emblematic of the embarrassing raid and how the allegedly wayward monk was seemingly caught red-handed.
The monk was brought to the police's station. While he denied any sexual misconduct, he admitted that being with a woman in his quarters at night was improper and agreed to leave the monkhood.
The woman also denied being sexually involved with the former abbot. She said she was there to deliver some documents and went into hiding out of fear after hearing a commotion outside the monk's quarters.
Despite the denials, the case seems to have gone down as a triumph of "people's power" to restore justice.
Amid the "entertaining" elements -- the thrill of a catch-me-if-you-can situation, the seemingly laughable gestures of the alleged wrongdoer trying to get away from tight spots, the tacky underwear scene or the fitting finale when the hidden woman was eventually found -- the popular sentiment was here is the fitting way to nail a "wrongdoer".
The quest for justice was displayed right before people's eyes via hours-long live streaming. For many people, it seems clear and unquestionable.
There were some news about the woman becoming shocked and extremely stressed as she blamed the incident on instigators who set up the "improper" scene. Her husband was also reportedly traumatised -- speechless -- as he was suddenly faced with the live streaming accusation against his wife.
But for others, the event entailed instant gratification. The entire "justice process" from the very beginning when suspicion was formed to the eventual defrocking of the monk was wrapped up in a single night.
This is just the opposite of what one expects from the "real" justice process, isn't it?
It is no surprise the storming of the monk's quarters and his eventual defrocking is generally viewed as a success story, a real-life chase and establishment of justice more sensational than most dramas.
But why has it come to this? The reasons, and possible failures behind the success of social media justice, may be less entertaining.
Atiya Achakulwisut is a Bangkok Post columnist.