Controversy Over Female Student Being Run Over by ‘Guidance Patrol’ at Azad University Branch

Following continued protests by students at Azad University, Tehran Central Unit against the presence of the Guidance Patrol, reports indicate the arrest of several students by security and law enforcement forces.

Based on images circulated on social media, students at Azad University, Tehran Central Unit in the Sohanak area gathered in protest on Saturday, October 27, against the presence of law enforcement patrols at the university.

In one of the released videos, a girl whose mobile phone was confiscated by officers stands in protest in front of a vehicle, but the law enforcement vehicle suddenly moves and attempts to run over the female student, dragging her backward over a considerable distance.

This video was also released on Sunday, showing the incident from a closer angle:

Student protests at the university continued on Sunday, October 28, amid reports from some sources of the arrest of four students, although official sources have not yet confirmed such arrests.

Mandatory hijab in Iran is one of the violations of citizens’ rights, and many women have faced numerous confrontations and deprivations over the past years due to what is called improper hijab or non-compliance with the hijab requirement.

The presence of special police forces dealing with improper hijab in Iran, known as the “Guidance Patrol,” is one of the latest measures by the Islamic Republic to enforce mandatory hijab. However, although the harsh and illegal conduct of these patrols has sometimes faced criticism from senior Iranian officials, it has never resulted in their closure.

In the latest case, it is even said that these patrols went to Azad University, Tehran Central Unit in Sohanak, while the presence of law enforcement and military forces at the university is prohibited by law.

Students at Azad University, Tehran Central Unit are protesting the presence of law enforcement forces as the Guidance Patrol at the university, while one of the officials of Azad University denied the existence of student protests and even the presence of the Guidance Patrol in an interview with ILNA news agency, claiming that the incident that occurred was outside the university and that law enforcement was simply performing its natural duty.

However, the running over of a female student by the Guidance Patrol generated numerous reactions on social media.

One Twitter user wrote that “the Guidance Patrol has no place at the university” and another user believed that a university is not a military barracks.