Over the past few days men in several parts of the capital Kabul have had their jackets torn from them and in some cases the jackets have been cut with scissors and knives.

The junior minister, Maulavi Mohammad Sharif Haqqani, said he had heard "this rumour", but had been unable to find any examples of the measure.

Even Taleban dress code has no protection for women

He said if he found anybody cutting a leather jacket off a citizen, the perpetrator would be dealt with according to Islamic principles.

Mr Haqqani noted that in the past an announcement had been made that pictures of living objects were un-Islamic.

He pointed out that this meant any shirts with images of living objects on them were illegal, so people could not wear such garments.

Almost all men in Afghanistan today wear the sharwal chemise (baggy trousers and loose shirt) often in winter with a jacket on top.

Head shaving campaign

The Taleban have also launched a new campaign to forcefully shave the heads of men in the city.

The BBC Correspondent in Kabul, William Reeve, reports that over the past few days a group of Taleban have been herding up mainly young men and taking them to a yard beside the Justice Ministry to have their heads shaved.

Our correspondent says the men had been rounded up for no apparent reason. Shaven men can be seen coming out of the yard and they do not look happy at all.

In Afghan society for a man to have his head shaved forcibly is psychologically a very painful experience.

Mr Haqqani said that these were not being carried out by religious police from his Ministry and that nobody else is allowed to carry out such punishments.