Goa fire tragedy: Police gets two-day transit remand of accused brothers after their deportation from Thailand

Gaurav Luthra and his brother Saurabh, co-owners of the nightclub where 25 people were killed in a fire on 6 December, are likely to reach Goa on Wednesday, 17 December, morning after the Goa Police was granted two-day transit remand by a Delhi court.

The brothers, co-owners of Birch by Romeo Lane at Arpora in North Goa, were arrested on Tuesday as soon as they landed in Delhi after being deported from Thailand.

The duo had fled to Phuket (Thailand) early on 7 December, hours after the fire at their nightclub, prompting the authorities to issue an Interpol Blue Corner Notice and cancel their passports.

They were detained by Thai authorities at Phuket on 11 December following a request from the Indian government, which later coordinated with officials in Thailand to deport them under legal treaties between the two nations.

Both the accused were taken in two separate police vehicles amid heavy security by the Goa Police and produced before Judicial Magistrate Twinkle Chawla in the Patiala House Court. The investigating officer informed the court that they would be taken to Goa by flight at the earliest. The Judicial Magistrate allowed the Goa Police a transit remand for two days.

In a statement issued in Panaji, a Goa police spokesperson said, "After taking the custody of the deported Luthra bothers in New Delhi and on obtaining the transit remand, the Goa police are bringing both the accused to Goa."

"The police team along with the accused is expected to reach Goa by tomorrow (Wednesday) morning," he said.

Five managers and staff members have already been arrested by the Goa Police in connection with the fire.

(With agency inputs)