US President
Joe Biden, whose election manifesto gave heavy weightage to stricter gun
control laws, on Tuesday called for a ban on assault weapons in the United
States as he urged the Congress to act on the gun control bill. The call came
in the wake of a deadly shootout in Colorado’s Boulder, which resulted in the
killing of 10 people, reported AFP.

Also Read: Boulder shooting: What we know so far

“I
don’t need to wait another minute, let alone an hour, to take common sense
steps that will save lives in the future — and to urge my colleagues in the
House and Senate to act,” Biden said in an address from the White House.

“We
should also ban assault weapons in the process,” said Biden, recalling the time when Congress had overcome the bipartisan division in 1994 and passed agreed on a 10-year ban on assault weapons

Also Read: Who was Eric Talley? The police officer killed in Boulder shooting

With a Senate Judiciary hearing on the subject already scheduled for Tuesday, the previously witnessed bipartisan divide is expected to emerge once more. 

Also Read: ‘He said nothing before raising the gun’: Eyewitnesses on Colorado shooter

“For the second time in a week, our nation is being confronted by the epidemic of gun violence. Too many families in too many places are being forced to endure this unfathomable pain and anguish,” House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, said in a statement.

On Monday, at least 10 people, including a police officer, were shot dead in a shootout at a supermarket in the Boulder area of the US’ Colorado. According to police, one suspect has been arrested and further details will be disclosed in a few days after investigation.