Goa police tell court: Luthra brothers had ‘ultimate control’ over happenings at nightclub

Seeking the transit remand, Goa Police told the court in its application that the Luthra brothers were the main owners of the nightclub ‘Birch’ by Romeo Lane and had “ultimate control over the operation, safety arrangement, permissions and events conducted at the premises”.

In its order, the court of Judicial Magistrate First Class Twinkle Chawla of Patiala House Court said, “It has been averred that there is sufficient evidence of the involvement of the accused persons as the accused persons are the main owners/partners of the establishment having ultimate control over the operation, safety arrangement, permissions and events conducted at the premises of ‘Birch’ by Romeo Lane Arpora, Bardez Goa.”

In a statement Tuesday night, Goa Police said, “After taking custody of Luthra brothers in New Delhi and on obtaining transit remand, Goa Police is bringing both the accused to Goa. A Goa police team is likely to land in Goa with the arrested accused around 11 am tomorrow morning.”

The Luthras fled to Thailand within hours of the blaze on the night of December 6.

The brothers were detained from a hotel in Thailand’s Patong last week, based on a request from Indian law enforcement agencies, following which the process to deport them was expedited. They were shifted to an immigration facility in Bangkok before being deported to India.

Sources said the Indian Embassy in Bangkok issued an emergency certificate to facilitate their one-way travel to India after their passports were impounded.

According to investigators, the Luthra brothers had taken a flight from Delhi to Phuket at 5.30 am on December 7, hours after the incident, which took place around midnight. They booked the tickets at 1.17 am on December 7 to flee the country, within 90 minutes of the blaze.

The technical fire safety incident report of the Fire Department found that information regarding a fire outbreak at the premises was received by the fire control room at 11.45 pm on December 6. Police said the accused duo was attending a wedding in Delhi on the night of the incident, when a club staff member informed them about the blaze.

Soon after they left the country, a lookout circular (LOC) was issued against them by the Bureau of Immigration at the request of Goa Police. Later, a Blue Corner Notice was issued, and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) impounded their passports.