KATHMANDU: Police have arrested a reality show organiser for swindling millions of rupees in the name of audition and prize money out of participants and guardians in the Capital, on Wednesday.

A team deployed from the Metropolitan Police Crime Division arrested Bikram Achhami, a permanent resident of Dhumbarahi in Kathmandu-4, from Bagbazaar in the Capital yesterday. He had organised a dance reality show named Dance Nepal Dance, and defrauded the money in the name of audition and prize.

According to police, Achhami operated a dance institute V and Virus Dance Academy through which he organised the show and telecasted it through various popular Nepali channels. “He auditioned around 300 contestants in the first season that began on June 10, 2011 and 400 contestants in the second season from August 11, 2016. He, however, failed to provide the winning cash prize to the contestants,” said police. He had charged Rs 500 from each participant for the audition form alone.

“The alleged promised to provide Rs 100,000 to the winner of the first season of the show. Likewise, he had promised to provide Rs 250,000 to the winner, Rs 100,000 to the first runner-up and Rs 18,000 to second runner-up of the second season. But, he had failed to provide the allocated money to all the winners,” informed police.

Achhami had also assured the winners of providing them jobs in various places. He also promised to make the contestants win through SMS voting and defrauded millions of rupees on that pretext.

The alleged also distributed the programme forms in various schools, and collected huge amount of money from the guardians of participants.

Police also seized a digital stamp of the dance company, poster cheque, empty and filled-in forms, correspondence, among others.

Police arrested Achhami on the basis of complaints filed by around 15 victims. He has been sent to Metropolitan Police Crime Division in Teku for further investigation and action.

As per the General Code of Nepal, he will be slapped five years imprisonment and fine equivalent to Rs 5,000.