"No Foreign Influence": On UPI Charges, Centre Trashes Opposition's Claim

The Union Finance Ministry stressed on Wednesday evening that the decision to impose a 0.4 per cent charge on UPI transactions above Rs 2,000 was made independently. "Some claims suggest the change is due to foreign influence. This is false. India's UPI policy decisions are made independently, with the clear goal of building a self-sustaining, inclusive, and affordable digital payments ecosystem," the ministry said in a post on X.This came after accusations by the Congress-led Opposition that the government "succumbed to US pressure" in imposing the charge, called the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR). Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha) Rahul Gandhi attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and termed the charge "UPI tax" earlier in the day, a characterisation that the ministry pointedly countered without naming anyone.It said the MDR is neither a tax nor a charge that the government collects.