New Delhi, Aug. 6 -- Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh on Thursday accused the Centre of creating a legal pathway for imposing charges on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions through the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, alleging that the legislation removes the statutory protection that has so far kept digital payments free. He also claimed the move may have been prompted by pressure from the United States.
In a statement, Ramesh alleged that the amendment "removes the statutory guarantee that keeps UPI transactions free" and "opens the door to Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charges, which can easily be expanded to all payments in the future.""The cost will inevitably be borne by ordina...