Delhi High Court seeks Centre, RBI response on surcharge over card payment for petrol

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought response from the Union government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on a PIL against the levy of transaction surcharges on purchase of petrol through credit and debit cards.

Advocate Amit Sahni, through his PIL, stated that the levy of such a surcharge was discriminatory in nature and promoted circulation of black money. "The petitioner has noticed that illegal, unequal and arbitrary treatment is seen across the country on transactions being done through credit and debit cards by levying surcharge at the rate of 2.5 per cent or more, while such surcharge is not levied when the payment is done through cash," the PIL stated.

In the petition, Sahni further highlighted that there was an urgent need to incentivise credit and debit card transactions and dis-incentivise the use of cash, in a bid to reduce dependency on paper money in a country as intensively cash rich as ours.

While lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to demonetize Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, the advocate called the Centre and RBI stand on waiving credit and debit card surcharges as "highly unfortunate", and contrary to the welfare of the nation at large. The petitioner urged the Ministry of Finance and the RBI to frame appropriate guidelines at the earliest, being the authorities responsible for regulation of such surcharges.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said that it has already directed the Ministry of Finance and RBI to take a decision on the issue and inform the petitioner.