Nur Elita was charged by officials of showing affection to a university student she wasn’t married to.

The man in question was also punished by authorities in the barbaric scenes in Indonesia.

Ms Elita received five lashes and had to be rushed to hospital.

The gruesome punishment took place in the country’s northern province of Banda Aceh, under the commandments of Sharia Law, a legal system based on Islam which regulates all aspects of everyday life.

Among those witnessing the macabre spectacle was the town’s Deputy mayor Zainal Arifin.

Under local rules, men and women who are not spouses are not allowed to interact with each other.

Over the years Banda Aceh, a predominantly Muslim region, has become increasingly conservative.

In October, strict anti-homosexuality rules came into effect, sparking an outcry from human rights campaigners. Adultery also carries a potential punishment of 100 strokes.

Local Sharia enforcer Syahrizal Abbas claimed earlier this year the new laws were being brought in to “safeguard human dignity.”

He said: “It is to protect Aceh’s Muslims from committing immoral acts.”

Amid the region’s growing conservatism, relations between Muslims and Christians have deteriorated, with a number of churches being destroyed in the past few months.

Although ethnically diverse, Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim country.

Spread across a chain of thousands of islands in Asia, the government in the capital Jakarta has for years been facing calls for independence in several provinces.