Goa nightclub fire: Luthra brothers brought back from Thailand

Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, owners of the Goa nightclub where 25 were killed in a fire, have been brought back to New Delhi from Thailand. The duo, who fled to Phuket after the blaze, will be produced before the Patiala House court.

The Luthra brothers, the owners of the Goa nightclub in which 25 people were killed in a fire, were on Tuesday brought back to New Delhi from Thailand, where they had fled. The Delhi-based brothers, Gaurav and Saurabh, fled to Phuket within hours of the blaze at their nightclub in Arpora, north Goa, on December 5, when the emergency teams were still battling it.

The accused duo will be produced before the Patiala House court in the national capital, following which the Goa police will take their custody.

Detention and Deportation from Thailand

The siblings, owners of the 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub, were detained by Thai Police from a resort in Phuket on Thursday after India moved to suspend their passports and requested the Thai authorities to deport them. An Indian law enforcement team coordinated formalities for the brother's return. An extradition treaty between India and Thailand has been in force since 2015. Thai officials stressed that due process was followed as part of the cooperation between the two countries, leading to the prompt, lawful handover of the brothers.

Criminal Case Details

The Goa Police had filed a criminal case dated December 07 at the Police Station Arpora Anjuna, North Goa, under sections 105, 125, 125(a), 125(b), and 287, read with 3(5) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023.

The FIR states that on December 6, Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, the accused persons, had organised a fire show at the restaurant Birch by Romeo Lane, Arpora, without taking proper precautions and without providing fire safety equipment and other safety measures. The fire show resulted in a blaze, due to which 25 innocent people, including tourists and staff, succumbed to death and many others were seriously injured.

The Luthra brothers, despite knowing that the restaurant does not have emergency exit doors on the ground or deck floors for evacuation in an emergency, organised the fire show. (ANI)

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