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UPI charges row: Chidambaram among 5 Congress MPs who had backed revenue framework

A parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance that included Congress MPs such as P Chidambaram submitted a report on August 12, 2026 urging a tiered merchant discount rate (MDR) framework for UPI to address a funding gap despite a Rs 2,000 crore budget allocation. Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi later denounced the 0.4% MDR on transactions above Rs 2,000 as a “UPI tax” and called for its rollback, while the government affirmed the rate will stay in place.