Five Congress MPs, Including P Chidambaram, Were On Panel That Backed UPI Fee, But Did Not Dissent

The controversy comes as the Centre moves to implement MDR on specified merchant UPI transactions above Rs 2,000.

Five Congress MPs, including former finance minister P Chidambaram, were present when the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance adopted a report recommending a tiered revenue framework for UPI, with no dissent recorded in the published minutes.

The development comes amid a political row over the Centre’s decision to introduce a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on specified UPI payments to merchants above Rs 2,000. The new framework is set to take effect from October 15, while person-to-person transactions will remain free.