Kathmandu, July 5

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli today said negotiations with organisers of Indian International Film Academy Awards were still under way, and that the awards function would be held in Nepal if it was in favour of Nepal.

Stating that the government had not yet signed an agreement with IIFA Awards organiser Wizcraft International Entertainment, Oli said propaganda was being conducted by those who wanted the Visit Nepal Year 2020 to fail.

Oli said IIFA Awards could play a crucial role in promotion of VNY-2020 when Nepal planned to bring in at least two million tourists.

Oli also made it clear that the Cabinet had decided to allow organisation of IIFA Awards with minimum costs and maximum benefits, and had not yet authorised the signing of the agreement. However, propaganda was conducted over a draft agreement that was never signed.

“The government is holding negotiations. We will organise the event in such a way that the country will not lose, but benefit,” said Oli at an event to welcome Samajwadi Party-Nepal leaders who joined the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) at the NCP headquarters in Kathmandu.

Without mentioning the name of the parliamentary International Relations Committee, Oli said directives were issued not to hold IIFA Awards in overreaction and ignorance.

The parliamentary committee had on Tuesday directed the government to immediately halt all work related to organising the event after the ministry and the Nepal Tourism Board could not furnish convincing arguments as to why the event should be held in Nepal.

After the direction, NTB temporarily halted all processes and preparations related to hosting the event. The NTB is one of the co-organisers of the event, along with Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

The panel had said in its decision that the draft agreement to be signed between the government and IIFA organiser Wizcraft was against national interest, and the government’s financial liability mentioned in the draft pact was “inappropriately and unnaturally high, considering the country’s economic status”.

As per the draft agreement, the government shall pay $4 million to the event’s organiser Wizcraft.

The government shall also provide Wizcraft venues that could accommodate 4,000 guests and other necessary infrastructure, all costs for which shall be borne by the government.

Terms of the draft agreement state the government shall provide accommodation facilities in hotels agreed and selected by Wizcraft, and also provide all air travel for the IIFA contingent and crew to travel to Nepal via commercial and/or chartered flights.