Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, criticised the Narendra Modi-led government over the recent notification regarding charges on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions. Gandhi claimed that this has opened the door for Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charges on certain higher-value merchant UPI payments and accused the government of yielding to pressure from American payment companies.
What is the New UPI Controversy?
The controversy follows a government notification under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. The notification tells banks and payment system providers not to charge UPI transactions up to ₹2,000 and payments made through RuPay debit cards.
Congress has focused on what it says is missing from the notification— an explicit protection for transactions above ₹2,000. The opposition argues that this could eventually allow MDR charges to be introduced on higher-value merchant transactions.
But the notification does not currently specify an MDR rate or announce an immediate charge on customers for UPI transactions above ₹2,000. Reports indicate that the applicable rate and the businesses that could be covered have not yet been decided.
Rahul Gandhi accuses Centre of yielding to US pressure
Rahul Gandhi strongly criticized the move in a post on X on September 15. He observed that UPI transactions above ₹2,000 could potentially attract MDR and argued that merchants could eventually pass the additional cost on to consumers through higher prices.
Gandhi also claimed that transactions above ₹2,000 account for only around 5% of UPI transactions by volume but represent nearly 65% of their total transaction value.
He claimed that American payment companies have long opposed India’s zero-MDR framework and accused the government of moving towards a system that could benefit foreign payment companies.
Congress Raises Consumer Concerns
The criticism was not limited to Rahul Gandhi. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also attacked the government on the notification and asked whether higher-value UPI transactions could eventually attract fees.
Kharge argued that even if the merchant technically is responsible for paying an MDR charge, businesses could recover the cost by increasing the prices of goods and services. Congress has therefore regarded the development as a potential additional burden on consumers.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also claimed that the notification removes an earlier blanket assurance on zero charges and could open a pathway for future changes to UPI pricing.
What Does the Government Notification Actually Say?
The government notification specifically protects UPI transactions of up to ₹2,000 from charges, along with payments made using RuPay debit cards.
The political dispute is over transactions above that threshold. Congress says the wording allows for future MDR charges to be set, but there is no announced rate or confirmed consumer fee for such transactions at present.
This is important because the current controversy is about the possibility and policy framework for future charges, not that every UPI payment above ₹2,000 will immediately become chargeable.
