Goa nightclub fire: MEA reviewing request to revoke passports of absconding owners, Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra

The Ministry of External Affairs has received a request from the Goa government seeking cancellation of the passports of Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, the proprietors of the Goa nightclub where a weekend fire claimed 25 lives, according to reports. Officials said the ministry is reviewing the proposal under the provisions of the Indian Passports Act. The Luthra brothers, who allegedly left India soon after the fire erupted at Birch by Romeo Lane in Arpora late on Saturday (December 6) night, are currently being traced by law-enforcement agencies. The incident exposed multiple safety lapses and unauthorised construction at the establishment.

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Saurabh Luthra and his brother Gaurav, Delhi-based entrepreneurs who run Birch by Romeo Lane, the Goa nightclub where a devastating fire claimed 25 lives late on Saturday, have left India, Goa Police confirmed on Monday (December 8). According to police, the brothers boarded an IndiGo flight 6E 1073 from Delhi to Phuket at 5:30 am on December 7, just a few hours after the blaze. The emergency call about the fire reached authorities shortly after midnight on Sunday. When investigators visited the Luthra residence in Delhi on Monday, the two were missing. Later, police announced that they had already flown out of the country.

On Instagram, Saurabh Luthra issued a statement expressing deep sorrow over the tragedy and extended support to the victims’ families “in every possible way.” The fire, which erupted at the Arpora nightclub in North Goa, is suspected to have been triggered by a gas-cylinder explosion in the kitchen area. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has ordered a magisterial inquiry with a four-member committee to determine the cause and identify those responsible. Among the victims were three sisters, Anita, Kamla, and Saroj Joshi, and Vinod Kumar, the husband of another sister. Their last rites were held in Delhi on Monday.