IndiaPosted at: Sep 16 2026 9:22PM


Priyanka Gandhi Revives ‘Reedh Seedhi’ Attack on Modi Over UPI Charges

New Delhi, Sep 16 (UNI) Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday stepped up the Opposition’s attack on the Narendra Modi government over the proposed Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on certain UPI transactions, invoking a reported remark associated with former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi while accusing Modi of compromising India’s interests in dealing with the United States.
In a post on social media platform X, Priyanka Gandhi shared remarks attributed to Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, who contrasted Indira Gandhi’s reported response to a question about whether she leaned towards the Left or the Right with what he described as Modi’s approach towards US President Donald Trump.
“Ek baar Indira Gandhi ji se poocha gaya ki unka jhukav Left ki or hai ya Right ki or...? Unka jawab tha — mera jhukav na Left hai, na Right, main reedh seedhi rakhti hoon,” the post said.
Taking a swipe at Modi, the statement added: “Lekin Modi ji ka siddhant alag hai, unhone Donald Trump ke saamne seedhe let jaane ka faisla kiya hai.”
The statement also alleged that the government was imposing a “UPI tax” on Indians to provide benefits to the United States and urged the Prime Minister to withdraw the proposed charges.
“Modi ji, reedh seedhi kijiye aur UPI tax wapas lijiye,” the post said.
The political attack comes amid a controversy over the government’s new framework for merchant transactions through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). Under the framework, a 0.4 per cent MDR is to apply from October 15 to specified person-to-merchant UPI transactions above Rs 2,000, with the charge capped at Rs 300 for transactions of Rs 75,000 and above.
The government has rejected the Congress’s description of the MDR as a “tax”, maintaining that it is neither a tax nor a fee collected by the government or the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). According to the government, MDR is a fee distributed among participants in the digital payments ecosystem, including banks and payment application providers.
The framework does not impose charges on person-to-person UPI transfers, which will remain free irrespective of the amount involved. Merchant transactions up to Rs 2,000 will also remain free. Small merchants receiving up to Rs 1 lakh a month through UPI QR codes under the specified category will continue to receive zero-MDR transactions.
The government has maintained that around 96 per cent of merchant transactions will remain unaffected by the new framework. It has said the changes are aimed at ensuring the financial sustainability of the UPI ecosystem while supporting continued investment in payment infrastructure, cybersecurity and expansion of digital payments, particularly in rural and semi-urban areas.
The government has also said banks must ensure that MDR is not passed on to customers and that UPI applications cannot impose separate platform fees or hidden charges on users.
The Congress has nevertheless continued to oppose the move, with Rahul Gandhi characterising the proposed MDR as an additional burden on citizens and linking the issue to the Modi government’s broader engagement with the United States.
The dispute over the proposed UPI charges has thus emerged as another political flashpoint between the government and the Opposition, with the Congress questioning the rationale and wider implications of the new payment framework, while the government maintains that the measure is intended to strengthen the long-term sustainability of India’s digital payments infrastructure.
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