Kanchanaburi: As police probe the assault of a nine-year-old boy at a temple, its abbot said the former senior monk who administered the punishment "didn't mean any real harm".
The boy is now in a coma. Police planned to question more witnesses yesterday including the abbot.
The assault on the boy took place last weekend and witnesses said they believed the former senior monk who punished the boy didn't intend to injure him.
Most faithful visiting Wat Don Khamin temple in Tha Maka district where the violence took place agreed the former monk did not set out with malice. The villagers visited the temple for a morning alms offering.
Phra Khru Suphat Kanchanakit, the temple abbot, said the former Phra Suppachai was ordained at the temple and had been there for several decades. He had no history of injuring any novice or child living at the temple before the incident, which resulted in him being defrocked.
