Turkey slams Austria for closing mosques
Ankara, June 9 : Turkey on Friday slammed Austria over the latter's decision to shut down seven mosques and expel 40 clerics as they are foreign-funded.
"We condemn Austrian politicians, especially Chancellor (Sebastian) Kurz, for trying to achieve political interest from these alarming developments, rather than fighting racism, Islamophobia and xenophobia and the rise of the extreme right," Xinhua quoted Turkish Foreign Ministry as saying.
Kurz said earlier on Friday that his decision was part of a crackdown on "political Islam". He said that investigators found out that the activities of seven mosques, one of which belongs to the Turkish-Islamic Cultural Associations, were found to be forbidden.
The Ministry warned that the Austrian move also contributes to the rise of Islamophobia and racism in Europe, and will affect the ongoing efforts to normalize the bilateral ties.
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag called the Austrian step as "unacceptable" as it destroys freedom of religion and conscience, and the values that define Europe.
In a tweet, Turkey's presidential aide Ibrahim Kalin denounced the Austrian move as "an attempt to target Muslim communities for the sake of scoring cheap political points".
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu vowed on Friday to stand against such injustice and defend the rights of Turkish expats.
Cavusoglu, in a phone call with his Austrian counterpart Karin Kneissl, expressed his "discomfort" over Kurz's statement on the issue, the report said.
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
