New Delhi: Goa Police are intensifying efforts to trace nightclub owners Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, who allegedly fled the country within hours of the devastating fire at Goa’s Birch by Romeo Lane. The late-night blaze, which erupted on Saturday in Arpora, claimed at least 25 lives and left several others injured.
Both brothers reportedly boarded IndiGo flight 6E 1073 to Phuket, Thailand, at 5:30 am on December 7, barely five hours after the incident. Their escape took place moments before a lookout circular was issued at the request of Goa Police.
An FIR was promptly filed against the two owners after they went missing. Even while on the run, Saurabh Luthra issued a statement on Instagram, saying the management was “deeply shaken” by the loss of lives and stood in “unwavering solidarity” with the families of the victims and the injured. His post, however, did not address allegations of negligence.
Following the registration of the case, a Goa Police team was rushed to Delhi to search the known addresses of the Luthra brothers. When neither owner was found at their residences, officers pasted notices under relevant legal provisions on their doors. The Bureau of Immigration in Mumbai later confirmed their early-morning departure from Delhi to Phuket.
With the accused having left India hours before investigators could act, Goa Police have now coordinated with the Interpol division of the CBI in an attempt to locate and detain the Luthra brothers abroad.