Pakistani university expels two students for 'hugging' on campus

A special disciplinary committee meeting was held on March 12 at 10:30 am (local time) and summoned the two students but they failed to appear. The committee then decided to expel the two students and ban them from entering any of the university's campuses, reported Dawn.

The university said that the students violated Section 9 of its General Discipline Rules and Code of Conduct. However, these rules are not published online, the report added.

The viral video shows the girl with her right knee bent on the ground, holding a bouquet of roses, proposing to the boy, who then takes the flowers and pulls the girl for a hug. Nearby students are seen cheering them along.

As soon as the videos went viral on social media in Pakistan, many politicians, activists and social media users reacted to the proposal and the action taken by the university.

Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto's daughter Bakhtawar Bhutto-Zardari took the Twitter, and termed the university action "ridiculous".

"It's okay to beat and scold a woman in public but not for her to hug someone," Pakistani singer and activist Shehzad Roy wrote in a tweet.

Pakistani Activist and academic Nida Kirmani said it's hard enough to find happiness in Pakistan and when someone does find it, the rest of society wants to punish them for it.