‘Indecent’ mannequins banned in Mumbai for fear of inciting rape

In a naive bid to curb the incidence of rape, the municipal corporation running India's western port city of Mumbai has unanimously adopted a resolution banning the public display of skimpily clad mannequins.

The city’s governing body is of the view that exhibiting sparsely clothed mannequins is “indecent” and could incite men to commit “wrong acts” – that is, sexual crimes.

Mumbai reported 231 rape cases last year, the second highest in India after the federal capital New Delhi, which registered 706. The unofficial number of rapes, however, is significantly higher as an inordinately large number of victims, fearing social censure, never report the violation.

“Two-piece clothing [lingerie or swimsuits] which barely cover the body has led to pollution of minds in today’s generation ,” said municipal councillor Ritu Tawade (39), who mooted the proposal for the ban that was collectively approved by the corporation on May 16th. “One must think of all the awkwardness a woman will feel standing in front of such a mannequin.

In response to Ms Tawade’s proposal, Mumbai mayor Sunil Prabhu said: “I agree that such scantily clad mannequins do invite unwanted attention of men and the resulting surge in sex crimes.”

Consequently, corporation members last week asked city commissioner Sitaram Kunte to frame stricter laws on displaying mannequins.

If approved, this could include prosecuting shopkeepers and pavement hawkers who exhibit such mannequins, merely fining them or simply getting them to remove the objects from public view.