Bengaluru, Sep 16: AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Wednesday alleged that the Modi government’s move to impose a 0.4 per cent fee on UPI payments above Rs 2,000 amounted to a “betrayal” of ordinary Indians and would ultimately increase the burden on consumers.
Calling September 14, the day the gazette notification was issued, a day of “digital somersault” and “betrayal and surrender”, the Rajya Sabha MP alleged that the Centre had opened the door by imposing the 0.4 per cent charge on person-to-merchant (P2M) UPI transactions above Rs 2,000.
He claimed that the government and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) could increase the charge or extend it to other UPI transaction categories via notification.
The AICC leader also alleged that the Modi government was surrendering to the whims of American companies, stating that US companies functioning in the sector will get a share in the pie of the Rs 5,040 crore UPI transaction tax for the first time, which was earlier completely free.
“UPI was a defining tool for a cashless, digital and inclusive India, but the Modi government is converting it into a tax imposition and collection machine targeting the common man,” Surjewala said in a statement.
Speaking to reporters here, he alleged that the government had effectively moved from a “transaction-tax-free UPI” regime to one where charges could be imposed without fresh parliamentary approval.
He argued that the move would undermine the government’s earlier vision of a digital and cashless India and described it as “betrayal, backstabbing and double crossing” of ordinary Indians. (PTI)
