A controversial clause that would allow the arrest of people and the surveillance of homes without informing related families has been deleted from the latest draft amendment of a paper submitted to the top legislature in the country that was scheduled to be read on Thursday.

The clause in the draft amendment to the Criminal Procedural Law, which permits the police to arrest a suspect and hold them at a specific place for further investigation without informing their family members if it may "impede the investigation" has been taken out of the latest version delivered to the National People's Congress for a third review.

The paper requires the police to inform the suspect's family within 24 hours after they arrest or hold a suspect at a specific place for investigation.

During its last two readings, in August and December, the controversial article aroused wide concerns about police abuse of power.