Goa nightclub owners Luthra Brothers detained in Thailand five days after fire incident
PTC Web Desk: Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Goa, where a devastating fire claimed 25 lives, have been detained in Phuket, Thailand, five days after the incident. The brothers had left India shortly after the blaze, boarding an IndiGo flight from Delhi to Thailand less than five hours after the tragedy.
Authorities issued a Look-Out Circular and an Interpol Blue Notice once it became clear that the duo had fled the country. Sources confirmed that a Goa Police team is preparing to travel to Thailand to secure their custody and bring them back to India to face legal proceedings.
Investigators later revealed that the Luthras booked their flight tickets at 1.17 am on December 7, around the same time emergency teams were battling the fire and rescuing people trapped inside the club. Their swift departure, especially during a nationwide disruption in IndiGo’s operations caused by mass cancellations and delays, further fuelled suspicion.
The brothers had declined to return to India voluntarily, citing fear of arrest. Instead, they approached a Rohini court in Delhi seeking anticipatory bail. In their plea, they argued that they were not involved in the day-to-day management of the Arpora-based club and claimed they were being targeted unfairly by authorities. They also maintained that their Thailand trip was a pre-planned business visit and not an attempt to abscond.
In a parallel development, a second establishment owned by the Luthras, a beach shack in Goa, was demolished on the direction of Chief Minister Pramod Madhav after officials found it was illegally constructed and lacked mandatory safety approvals.
The FIR filed by the Goa Police paints a damning picture of the safety violations at Birch by Romeo Lane. The club reportedly operated without basic firefighting systems, including extinguishers, alarms, suppression equipment or any fire audit on record. The police further alleged that the owners, manager, partners, event organisers and senior staff hosted a fire act at the venue despite knowing the risks, and without ensuring safety precautions. The lack of emergency exits on both the deck and ground floor left many guests trapped when the fire broke out.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Madhav had earlier intensified efforts to track down the brothers, vowing swift arrests and warning other clubs across the state to adhere strictly to fire-safety norms.
Meanwhile, Ajay Gupta, a co-owner of the club, was detained in Delhi on Tuesday. He later said he was only a “sleeping partner” and had no knowledge of the operational lapses.
- With inputs from agencies
