House Clears Taxation Bill; No UPI Payment Charge for Consumers: FM, Pg6

Key Highlights:

• The Rajya Sabha passed the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026, by voice vote.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman confirmed that UPI transactions will remain free for consumers and small merchants, with no Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charges imposed on them.
• The Taxation Bill, a Money Bill, had previously been cleared by the Lok Sabha.
• The Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026, aims to modernize the legal framework for admitting electronic and digital banking records as evidence in legal proceedings.
• The Taxation Bill replaces the Income-tax (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, promulgated on June 5, 2026.

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Detailed Insights:

• The Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, amends the Income-tax Act, 2025, Finance Act, 2026, and Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.
• Its objectives include attracting foreign investment, promoting the "Make in India" initiative, and enhancing the ease of doing business.
• The Finance Minister clarified that any future MDR framework for UPI would apply only to a limited category of merchant transactions above a certain threshold, not to ordinary low-value transactions.
• The Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026, repeals and replaces the 135-year-old Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1891.
• This new legislation provides a technology-neutral framework, recognizing records in physical, electronic, digital, virtual, or cloud-based formats as admissible evidence.
• It also strengthens statutory protection for bank officers, ensuring they are not unnecessarily summoned to court in proceedings where the bank is not a party.
• The passage of these bills occurred amidst parliamentary disruptions, with the Opposition staging walkouts over other issues.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Unified Payments Interface (UPI): An instant real-time payment system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• Merchant Discount Rate (MDR): A fee paid by a merchant to their bank or payment service provider for processing digital transactions.
• Money Bill: A bill dealing exclusively with financial matters, which can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha and has limited powers for the Rajya Sabha under Article 110 of the Constitution.
• Ordinance: A temporary law promulgated by the President when Parliament is not in session, having the same force as an Act of Parliament but requiring parliamentary approval within six weeks of reassembly.