LAHORE, Pakistan — Authorities in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province shut all schools and universities for two days on Friday in an attempt to contain the spread of protests by students over an alleged on-campus rape . The closures in Pakistan’s most populous province affect an estimated 18 million students.

Pakistani police clashed with student protesters across multiple cities after reports of an alleged rape at a Lahore college went viral. Violence erupted in Rawalpindi, resulting in the arrest of 250 people.

Protests spread across Pakistan following the alleged rape of a college student. The demand for justice escalated into violence in Lahore and Rawalpindi, with reports of vandalism and arson at various public and private institutions.

The government of Pakistan’s largest province of Punjab has banned all public gatherings and closed educational institutions as more protests against an alleged on-campus rape of a college student in Lahore are expected on Friday.

Punjab authorities also ban gatherings as hundreds are arrested while protesting reports of a rape on a college campus.

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Protests sparked by an alleged rape incident in Pakistan's Punjab province took a violent turn, resulting in widespread clashes, vandalism, and arson across various cities.