Mumbai, September 19, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday launched a sharp political attack on the Central government over the proposed 0.4 per cent Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on select Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions above Rs 2,000, alleging that citizens had been drawn into a “digital trap”.
In a detailed statement posted on X, Thackeray accused the ruling MahaYuti coalition-led Maharashtra government of encouraging citizens to rely on free digital transactions before introducing charges and taxes after widespread adoption.
Tracing the growth of digital payments from the 2016 Demonetisation exercise to the nationwide expansion of UPI, Thackeray alleged that the process was aimed at making citizens dependent on digital payments before imposing charges.
“First came Demonetisation; then the UPI system was introduced with great fanfare to showcase the push for digital transactions. They trumpeted its success, basked in self-praise, got people habituated to it, and then suddenly announced that fees would apply,” he said.
Thackeray said he had repeatedly warned against assuming that zero-fee digital services would remain free permanently. He also questioned why long-term budgetary provisions for maintenance and cybersecurity were not created during the initial investment phase if the objective was to simplify transactions rather than monetise them later.
Rejecting the Union government’s position that the 0.4 per cent MDR would be borne solely by merchants, Thackeray argued that there were no adequate monitoring mechanisms to prevent businesses from passing the additional operational cost on to consumers.
He also criticised the proposed 18 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST) on the MDR, accusing the Finance Ministry of seeking to increase revenue from citizens.
Thackeray further referred to Opposition allegations about alleged US pressure and questioned whether foreign card companies and global payment networks had influenced the policy decision.
Sharing a screenshot of an official government post from August 21, 2022, which stated that UPI services would remain free, the MNS chief described the recent policy change as evidence of what he called “unclear and non-transparent intentions”.
He formally registered his party’s opposition to the implementation of the MDR and appealed to traders, small business owners and retail associations to take a united stand against the proposed transaction levies.
Thackeray urged merchants across Maharashtra and the country to oppose the new charges.
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