The newly formed government in West Bengal has announced that welfare schemes linked to religious identity, including monthly honorariums for imams, muezzins and temple priests, will be discontinued from June.

The policy marks a major shift from the earlier Trinamool Congress government, which had introduced financial assistance programmes for religious functionaries after coming to power in the state.

According to reports, the first such scheme was launched in 2012, under which registered imams in West Bengal received a monthly honorarium of Rs 2,500. Similar support was later extended to muezzins and Hindu temple priests.

The new administration led by Suvendu Adhikari has maintained that government welfare initiatives should not be distributed on the basis of religion.

The announcement comes shortly after the BJP formed the government in West Bengal following the recent Assembly elections.

The decision is expected to trigger political debate in the state, as the honorarium schemes had remained a key issue in Bengal politics for several years.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday arrested Aam Aadmi Party leader Deepak Singla after carrying out searches at multiple locations in Delhi and Goa in connection with an alleged bank fraud-linked money laundering case.

Singla, who serves as the AAP’s Goa co-incharge, was questioned for several hours before being taken into custody by the agency. Officials said the searches were conducted by the ED’s Delhi Zonal Office-2.

The development comes months before the Goa Assembly elections scheduled next year and has triggered a strong reaction from the AAP leadership.

AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal claimed that Singla was being targeted for political reasons and alleged that he was arrested because he refused to join the BJP.

Reacting to the ED action, Atishi accused the BJP of using central agencies against opposition parties in poll-bound states. She alleged that the raids were aimed at intimidating party workers and accessing the party’s organisational data in Goa.

Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia also criticised the Centre and alleged misuse of institutions such as the ED and CBI against opposition leaders.

According to reports, this is not the first time Deepak Singla has faced scrutiny from the ED. In 2024, the agency had also conducted searches at his residence in connection with the same alleged money laundering investigation.

At least 10 people were killed after a van and a truck collided head-on on the Sisaiya–Lakhimpur National Highway in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri district.

The impact of the collision was severe, leading to multiple fatalities on the spot, according to initial reports from the accident site.

Following the crash, local authorities and emergency teams reached the location and initiated rescue operations. The injured were shifted for medical treatment, while efforts were made to clear the damaged vehicles from the highway.

Police have taken cognizance of the incident and further investigation into the cause of the collision is underway.

This incident adds to the growing number of serious road accidents reported on highways in Uttar Pradesh, raising concerns over traffic safety and enforcement in high-speed zones.