The state government in Tamil Nadu, in southern India, has passed a new law the Prevention of Terrorism Activities or POTAaimed at preventing militant activities in the region.

The move comes nearly three months after more than sixty people were killed in a series of bomb explosions in the city of Coimbatore.

The new law provides for prosecutions on the basis of confessions to police, the establishment of special courts and the imposition of the death penalty for involvement in militant activities.

Human rights groups and various Muslim organisations have protested that the law is likely to be misused by the authorities.

A similar law (-- the Terrorism and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act or TADA) lapsed in l995.