Rahul Gandhi Calls New UPI Merchant Charge a 'Tax', Targets PM Modi
Rahul Gandhi has criticised the NPCI's new 0.4% merchant discount rate on UPI payments above Rs 2,000, calling it a 'UPI tax' and accusing PM Modi of bowing to US pressure.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday attacked the Centre over the revised pricing framework for Unified Payments Interface transactions, describing the new merchant charge as a "UPI tax" and accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of capitulating to the United States.
In a video message, Gandhi invoked a remark attributed to former prime minister Indira Gandhi, who, when asked whether she leaned Left or Right, is said to have replied that she stood straight. He contrasted that with the present leadership, saying Modi had chosen a different posture altogether and had decided to prostrate himself before US President Donald Trump.
Gandhi urged the Prime Minister to reverse the decision, asking him to stand up and roll back what he termed the UPI tax.
The criticism follows a statement by the National Payments Corporation of India announcing a revised merchant pricing framework. Under the new arrangement, a Merchant Discount Rate of 0.4 per cent will apply to eligible person-to-merchant UPI transactions above Rs 2,000 from October 15, 2026. The charge is to be borne by the merchant and is capped at Rs 300 for transactions of Rs 75,000 and above. Person-to-person UPI transfers will remain free of charge.
Gandhi contended that the levy would ultimately fall on ordinary consumers. In a post on X a day earlier, shortly after the NPCI announcement, he said that while merchant transactions above Rs 2,000 may account for only about 5 per cent of UPI volumes, they represent nearly 65 per cent of the platform's total transaction value. He argued that although the government says customers will not be charged, fees imposed on shopkeepers would eventually be passed on through higher prices.
He also claimed that American payment companies have long opposed India's zero-MDR policy and that the government had now moved in the direction of changing it. Drawing a parallel with a US trade deal, he accused the Prime Minister of surrendering to American pressure.