Quicktakes — Secrets Act to be renamed

Secrets Act to be renamedCHENNAI: The Centre is taking steps to rename the Official Secrets Act, 1923, as Right to Information Act, with su...

Secrets Act to be renamed

CHENNAI: The Centre is taking steps to rename the Official Secrets Act, 1923, as Right to Information Act, with suitable amendments, Union Minister of State for Personnel, S R Balasubramaniam announced at a press conference here today. This was to introduce more transparency in the functioning of the government. However, defence and intelligence would not not be included in the purview of the right to information, he said.

HK curbs begin

HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s future legislature today passed a law curbing political freedoms when the British-ruled territory reverts to China on July 1, Hong Kong Cable Television said. The 60-member, pro-China provisional legislature adopted an amendment to Hong Kong’s public order ordinance, curbing the right of assembly and protest, the station said. Indians killedDUBAI: Four Indians were killed in an arson attack on a carpet store in the Bahraini capital Manama. LV Paulose, 41, his wife Aleyamma, their 10-year-old son Sandeep and his friend Ranjit were killed in the blaze yesterday. A fifth person, a Philippines national, was seriously injured in the fire.

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“Investigations are in progress to find and arrest the criminals,” a ministry statement said. Bahrain has been hit by sporadic unrest since December 1994 in which at least 31 people have died.

Killer guard

CHENNAI: A 25-year old woman construction worker was seriouly wounded by a bullet which was allegedly fired accidentally from the Ak-47 assault rifle of a National Security Guard (NSG) commando, outside the residence of former Tamil Nadu chief minister, Jayalalitha.

Police commissioner, V K Rajagopalan, when contacted said the commando had claimed that while he was sitting in a car and was cleaning his rifle, it went off accidentally, and hit the worker, Selvi in her stomach.

Karachi violence

KARACHI: Eight people, including a policeman, were today killed in violent incidents in the Pakistani city of Karachi, police said. There was no immediate word on the motive for any of the separate attacks. Violence has risen in recent weeks amid tension between rival wings of the ethnic Mohajir Quami Movement (MQM).

Passengers unhurt

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AMRITSAR: All the hundred-odd passengers and crew members on board Indian Airlines flight IC-CD-486 from mumbai escaped unhurt when the aircraft developed a technical snag after landing at the Raja Sansi airport here this evening.

The aircraft was enroute to New Delhi via Amritsar and Chandigarh.