Goa club blaze: Romeo Lane partner was in the state, left for Delhi soon after; Luthra brothers were at a wedding

When a police team from Goa reached his residence in Gurgaon, he was not found there. Police traced him to a private hospital in Delhi’s Lajpat Nagar, where he got himself admitted for treatment for a spinal issue. “He said he had a lower back surgery five years ago and had been experiencing sharp pain in the spine, and hence he sought treatment,” said the police officer.

After he was discharged from the hospital, he was arrested and taken to a Delhi court, from where he was granted transit remand to be shifted to Goa. Gupta was produced before a court in Mapusa on Thursday and remanded to police custody for seven days. “I am a sleeping partner. I have no role in operations,” Gupta told the media, as he left the court in the custody of the police.

Police have also learnt that Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, who were detained in Thailand on Thursday, were attending a wedding in Delhi when the fire broke out. “A staff member informed them about the blaze, and they immediately made plans to leave the country,” said the police officer.

Goa police on Wednesday said the brothers booked tickets to Thailand within 90 minutes of the blaze. In a statement, the Goa police said the investigation revealed that the brothers booked the tickets at 1:17 am on December 7. “While Goa police and fire services were battling the blaze and rescuing those trapped, the accused were preparing to flee the country,” the statement alleged.

The duo had taken a flight to Phuket at 5:30 am on December 7, hours after the incident.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has impounded the passports of the brothers. It is examining the Goa government’s request to revoke the passports.