
Things come to a head
Mannequins are strange objects. They are ‘pretend people’ wearing clothes that would be either difficult or impossible for real models to wear throughout the day in a shop front. Inorganic as they are, their resemblance to the human form — sometimes a bit too eerily — can be bothersome in some cultures. While lingerie shops think that draping one of those lace things will make the potential customer focus on the product on sale, there is that unsaid matter of some eyes, at least, beholding the ‘wrong’ object. The United Arab Emirates is not leaving things to chance. Authorities have just announced that mannequins in the city of Sharjah will not only have to wear ‘decent clothes’, but they will have also to be headless.
Officials of the Sharjah municipality are not being underhand when they say that to “uphold the traditional and religious values of the emirate”, (decapitated) mannequins will not be allowed to don underwear. The ban had actually been officially sanctioned five years ago following a fatwa issued by the Islamic Affairs Department. But retail shops will be retail shops — and they lapsed into displaying ‘bold’ mannequins again.
Those of us who may think that the UAE is taking this ‘mannequin etiquette’ business a bit too seriously are probably in a state of denial. In any case, do mannequins really serve the purpose of helping us to choose a piece of clothing — risqué or otherwise — for our loved ones? Well, only some of us, lonely and with mannequins at home will even dare to answer that.

Disagreeing with govt is not sedition, says SC
- India’s sedition law has an interesting past — it was introduced by the British in 1870, decided to be dropped from the Constitution in 1948 after discussions of the Constituent Assembly.

Centre plans tourism push to mark 75 years of Independence
- India will also promote tourism by celebrating 2022 as the Visit India Year through a promotion campaign highlighting India’s strengths like heritage, culture, art, wellness and yoga.

2 held for murder of sexual assault survivor’s father
- The ADG has constituted teams of police personnel from Aligarh to assist the Hathras police.

Teen held for murder of girl after rape bid
- The incident took place on Sunday afternoon, when the girl went to a wheat field, owned by the family of the accused, to collect fodder and water.

Only Centre can enforce new digital media rules: I&B ministry to states
- The provisions under the new rules relate to the code of ethics for digital news publishers, setting up of a grievance redressal system and the requirement of disclosure of information to Centre, the ministry said.

Spectrograph designed for Uttarakhand telescope
- The instrument will support the 3.6 metre Devasthal Optical Telescope (DOT) in Uttarakhand, an official release from the department of science said on Wednesday.

‘Ceasefire need of the hour... desirable for both India, Pak’: Lt-Gen BS Raju
- Lt-Gen BS Raju said a quiet LoC will allow us to address the challenge of terrorism in a focused manner.

ED begins probe against Franklin Templeton
- The central agency has registered a case on the basis of an FIR registered by Chennai Economic Offences Wing in September last year.

Experts slam claim that human activity not behind Chamoli disaster
- Dhyani added that the burden on the ecology due to construction on Himalayan slopes made the region prone to disasters.

Supreme Court issues notice on Gautam Navlakha’s plea for default bail
- Navlakha claimed in his petition filed through advocate Shadan Farasat that the 90-day period for filing of charge sheet was over and he was entitled to default bail under Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

GJM leader close to Bimal Gurung arrested under POCSO in Sikkim
- Lama was being considered as the GJM candidate for the Kalimpong assembly seat in the coming polls later this month.

Centre differs with SC on additional courts for cheque bounce cases
- Unhappy with the response, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) SA Bobde asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to appear in the case along with Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Vikramjeet Banerjee, who presented the note to the Court.

Man in Maharashtra wanted to ride horse to office to overcome spinal problem
- The officer withdrew his request after an orthopaedic surgeon said his purpose would not be served by buying a horse.

India signs pact with Philippines for supply of BrahMos missile
