Japan executes cult leader
tokyo, July 6 : Japan on Friday executed the leader of the Supreme Truth cult who had masterminded the deadly sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo subway in 1995.
The 63-year-old Shoko Asahara, whose real name was Chizuo Matsumoto, had been on death row more than a decade, reports Efe news.
Founded in 1984, the Japanese doomsday cult also known as Aum Shinrikyo, itself into an organisation capable of developing chemical and biological weapons in just one decade.
It even presented a list of candidates for the 1990 general election but did not win any seats in parliament.
Asahara, who had suffered partial blindness since childhood, was detained in May 1995, two months after the nerve agent attack on March 20, 1995, which killed 13 people and injured more than 6,000.
He was sentenced to death in 2004 for the attack and other crimes including another sarin gas attack in 1994 in Matsumoto, which killed eight people and injured more than 100 others.
The execution of the leader and six other members of the Supreme Truth, came as a result of a 20-year investigation in which all those involved in the incidents have been tried and convicted.
The Supreme Court rejected their appeals in January.
The Japanese Tribunal has prosecuted about 190 cult members for the attacks and other related crimes, including the 1989 murder of lawyer Tsutsumi Sakamoto and his family, and passed six life sentences and 13 death sentences.
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PUC-2 pass percentage stands at 81.58 per cent in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): Students across Karnataka scored high marks in the PUC-2 Examination-1 for 2026, to which the results were announced on Thursday. The overall pass percentage stood at 81.58 per cent.
The Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) released the combination-wise list of toppers for various streams.
The Pre-University College-2 (PUC-2) Exam-1 was conducted from February 28 to March 17 at 1,217 Examination Centers across the state.
A total of 6,94,545 students appeared for the examination this year, of whom 5,66,608 cleared it.
Girls outperformed boys, with a pass percentage of 88.70 per cent compared to 83.65 per cent among boys.
Among college categories, residential PU colleges topped with 93.99 per cent results, followed by unaided colleges at 90.73 per cent, aided colleges at 78.72 per cent, and government colleges trailing at 57.11 per cent.
In terms of categories, General and 3A segments recorded the highest pass percentages at 92.69 per cent and 92.22 per cent respectively, while SC and ST categories also saw marked improvement over the previous year.
Medium-wise results indicated that English medium students performed better with 90.63 per cent pass rate, compared to 76.41 per cent in Kannada medium.
A total of 1,70,529 students secured distinction (85 per cent and above), while 2,95,385 students passed in first class.
The Board said students can access their results on the official portal and through mobile applications.
The PUC-2 Examination-2 is scheduled to be held from April 30 to May 13, 2026, with online registration open till April 17.
The Board has also enabled online applications for scanned copies of answer scripts from April 10 to April 15, and revaluation applications between April 12 and April 17, with fees fixed at Rs 530 per subject for scanned copies and Rs 1,670 for revaluation.
