Goa nightclub fire: Owners, Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra flew to Phuket hours after fire that killed 25, say police

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.

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Goa Police on the owners’ escape to Thailand

A lookout notice had been issued for the Luthra brothers through the Bureau of Immigration on Sunday evening. “Bureau of Immigration officials in Mumbai confirmed that both individuals boarded flight 6E 1073 to Phuket early on December 7, just hours after the incident. This clearly indicates an attempt to evade investigation,” said DSP Nilesh Rane, PRO of the Goa Police. He added that police are now working with the Interpol division of the CBI to trace and detain the two men, according to a report in Hindustan Times.

Meanwhile, an employee of the club, Bharat Kohli, was taken into custody in Delhi and transported to Goa for interrogation. The Goa BJP government has also intensified its action against the Romeo Lane hospitality chain. Two of their establishments in Vagator and Assagao, along with an affiliated beach shack and another club, have been sealed.