Iranian couple arrested after public marriage proposal at shopping mall goes viral

A couple in Iran was arrested after their marriage proposal in a shopping mall was caught on camera and went viral on social media. Reports state that the arrest was made after their public proposal was deemed offensive to Islam.

The clip, which was shared by many social media users, showed the moment a young man proposed to his girlfriend and placed a ring on her finger at a shopping man in Tehran, Iran.

Shortly after the footage was uploaded, Iranian authorities condemned the couple's actions saying that it contradicted Islamic doctrines of the country, Daily Mail reported.

The couple was subsequently arrested for flouting the country's laws on public decency. They have since been released on bail, according to reports.

The clip, which has gone viral, shows the unidentified man standing inside a ring of flower petals shaped like a heart as his girlfriend looks at him with excitement. The woman then says "yes" to the man's marriage proposal as the boyfriend slips the ring on her finger. The overjoyed pair then hug each other as spectators around them cheer them on.

Arak deputy police chief Mostafa Norouzi, while talking to Shahrvand daily about the incident, said that the couple's "offense is very clear and there is no need for explanation." The officer added that it was unacceptable for the couple "to do whatever is common in other places of the world and disregard mores, culture and religion."

The Islamic legislation in Iran states that men and women are forbidden from exhibiting affection publicly as it is deemed an influence of corrupt Western ideals in Iran. The ruling law also prohibits couples from kissing and dancing in public.

This couple was arrested because of the demolition of public chastity!!
Yesterday an Iranian man proposed to this girl and the police arrested the two of them due to public chastity! how crazy is that??#iran#proposal#marriage pic.twitter.com/kKG3mSn4J9

— Katherine.N.Alexandra (@yasy88) March 9, 2019

This is not the first instance of Iranian citizens being arrested for breaking the country's laws on public decency. A teenager, Maedeh Hojabri, in 2018 had caused outrage after she posted a video of herself dancing to western and Iranian pop and rap music on Instagram.

Shortly after the young girl was arrested, women across the country took to streets in protest and filmed themselves dancing in public, according to reports.

Now people in Iran have started posting their videos of themselves dancing to express their Solidarity with Maedeh Hojabri who was arrested for dancing. How many they will arrest? #DancingIsNotACrime https://t.co/3akxAOjjA8

— Kawalpreet Kaur (@kawalpreetdu) July 13, 2018