As Goa Nightclub Blaze Raged, Claiming 25 Lives, Luthra Brothers Booked Tickets To Thailand

New Delhi: When the deadly blaze on December 6 at famous Goa nightclub - Birch by Romeo Lane- during a packed-Saturday night performance killed 25 people, the owners of the club- Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra- managed to slip out of the country through Delhi airport to 'evade' arrest.

Luthra brothers reportedly booked their ticket for Thailand at popular ticketing platform at 1.17 am on 7th December from Delhi when emergency services were occupied in controlling the blaze and rescue trapped patrons at Goa nightclub. 

The duo is still at large and their evasion has raised serious questions about how the Luthra brothers managed to flee the country despite IndiGo’s nationwide operational chaos.

Interpol notice issued

The authorities, meanwhile, stepped up efforts to track down the absconding owners of Birch by Romeo Lane. The International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) has reportedly issued a 'Blue Corner Notice' for Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, the owners of Goa's Birch nightclub, as they fled to Thailand's Phuket from Delhi on Sunday, just few hours after the fire tragedy.

The Luthra brothers, who have been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, fled from Delhi on an IndiGo flight. Immigration records confirmed that they boarded an early-morning flight (IndiGo 6E 1073) from Delhi at 5.30 am on Sunday.

The Goa Police, after the FIR was lodged, searched through the residences and offices of Luthra brothers on Sunday in Delhi but in vain as  both were properties locked and unoccupied and notices were pasted on their gates.

Goa Police described their departure as “intent to avoid police investigation”, underlining the urgency of international cooperation.

Series Of Arrests Made

Meanwhile, a number of Luthra brothers' associates and club staff have been taken into custody. Most recently, a key manager from the Delhi outlet, Bharat Kohli, was detained in Delhi and placed on transit remand to appear before the Goa Police.

The controversy began when a fire engulfed the club Birch by Romeo Lane on Saturday night, owned by Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, killing 25 people.

Preliminary investigations have already flagged a slew of regulatory and safety lapses. According to police and fire-service officials, the club lacked valid fire-safety clearances, proper emergency exits and essential safety infrastructure such as sprinklers, alarms and clearly marked escape routes thereby leading to the harrowing incident.

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