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U.S. passes `catastrophe' bill

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, APRIL 23. By a vote of 306 to 97 the House of Representatives of the United States Congress has approved a bill that will allow speeding up elections if 100 or more of its members are killed in an attack.

The move on Capitol Hill has for now set aside the larger question of whether a constitutional amendment is necessary to have temporary appointments in the event of an attack leading to mass casualties.

The vote on Thursday came two and a half years after the crash of a United Airlines Plane in Pennsylvania on September 11, 2001 which many believe was heading the way of the U.S. Capitol.

"Those passengers gave their lives to give us a second chance" a lawmaker remarked.

The bill that has cleared the House would require special elections within 45 days of the House Speaker confirming a catastrophic event that has left at least 100 out of the 435 seats in the House vacant.

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