Nightclub fire: Goa court remands Luthra brothers in police custody for five days

The brothers, who were brought to Goa on Wednesday after being deported from Thailand were produced in the court after undergoing health check-ups twice at the District Hospital in North Goa.
 Gaurav Luthra, co-owner of Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub
Gaurav Luthra, co-owner of Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane nightclubPhoto | PTI
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A court in North Goa on Wednesday remanded Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra --co-owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub-- for five days in police custody in connection with the December 6 fire that claimed 25 lives.

The brothers, who were brought to Goa on Wednesday after being deported from Thailand were produced in the court after undergoing health check-ups twice at the District Hospital in North Goa.

Judicial Magistrate First Class Mapusa Puja Sardesai remanded the two brothers in police custody for five days.

A Goa Police team arrived with the accused at Manohar International Airport, Mopa, at around 10.45 am.

The duo was initially taken to a Primary Health Centre at Siolim in North Goa for medical examination. They were later taken to the District Hospital at Mapusa in North Goa.

A convoy of six police jeeps accompanied them from the airport to the medical facility.

The brothers were taken to the Anjuna police station for interrogation before being produced before the court in Mapusa.

The Anjuna police had earlier registered a case against the Luthra brothers on multiple charges, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, following the deadly fire at the Arpora nightclub in North Goa.

The duo was arrested in Delhi on Tuesday immediately after their deportation from Thailand. A Delhi court granted the Goa Police a two-day transit remand.

Investigators said the brothers fled to Phuket hours after the fire on December 7, leading authorities to cancel their passports and issue an Interpol Blue Corner Notice.

They were detained by Thai authorities in Phuket on December 11 following a request from the Indian government and were subsequently deported under bilateral legal provisions.

So far, five managers and staff members of the nightclub have been arrested in connection with the case.

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