Days after the Goa nightclub fire that claimed 25 lives, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is considering revoking the passports of Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra – co-owners of ‘Birch by Romeo Lane’ nightclub – after receiving a request from the Goa government. Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, residents of Delhi, fled to Phuket, Thailand after the tragedy. They are said to have fled the country hours after the fire broke out. An Interpol Blue Corner Notice was issued against them.
Sources told PTI on Wednesday that the ministry has received a communication from the Goa government regarding Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra. It is examining the application to withdraw their passports under the Indian Passport Act in accordance with the rules, they said.
Earlier, a Delhi court refused to grant the duo any interim protection from arrest while their partner was held in connection with the fire.
In court, the Luthras insisted they had not fled the country after the nightclub fire, but had gone abroad for work commitments. They also claimed that they were only licensees and not the actual owners of the nightclub.
In his bail application, Saurabh sought four weeks of interim protection from transit, claiming that returning to Goa posed an “imminent threat to his life, liberty and security”.
“My other restaurants have been bulldozed. The authorities and even the fourth estate are asking for my blood,” his lawyer told the court.
In a related development, the Goa police on Wednesday arrested Ajay Gupta, who claimed to be a silent associate and investor in the ‘Birch by Romeo Lane’ night club in North Goa, with the help of the Delhi Police Crime Branch. A Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued against him.
Gupta, a resident of Jammu, was produced before Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Vinod Joshi, who granted Goa police a 36-hour transit remand to take him to Goa. The court cited the ongoing air travel crisis caused by IndiGo’s canceled flights as the reason for the extended remand period and also ordered the authorities to provide proper medical care to Gupta, who is suffering from a spinal injury, during his transfer.
Goa police have already arrested five managers and employees in connection with the fire that broke out at a night club in Arpora, 25 km from Panaji, around midnight on December 6.
