Luthras used forged land agreement to seek Goa nightclub permit, say police

Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra face investigation for allegedly using a forged land agreement to open a nightclub in Goa, where 25 died in a fire.

Panaji Delhi-based entrepreneurs Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra allegedly applied for permission to open their club in Goa’s Arpora using a forged copy of a land agreement, police said on Friday, adding that the investigators will confront the brothers about this revelation when they receive custody likely early next week.

The Luthras fled to Phuket within hours after a blaze ripped through their club in Goa.(ANI)

The Luthras, who fled to Phuket within hours after a blaze ripped through their club in Goa and killed 25 people, were detained by local authorities in Thailand and a joint investigation team will soon bring the accused back to India, chief minister Pramod Sawant had said on Thursday.

His comments came after the external affairs ministry began considering the Goa government’s request to revoke the passports of the two brothers, after receiving a communication from the state government.

Twenty-five people, including four from a Delhi family, were killed and six injured after a massive fire tore through their nightclub – Birch by Romeo Lane – in the coastal village of Arpora in north Goa around 11.45pm on Saturday. Authorities have said that even as the fire was gutting the structure, the two brothers booked tickets to Thailand at 1.17am on Sunday and flew out at 5.30am the same day. A lookout notice against them was issued roughly 24 hours later.

“Our initial inquiries have revealed that the nightclub owners submitted a bogus agreement in order to claim ownership of the land when applying for permissions. We are cross checking the documents as part of the ongoing investigation,” a police official part of the investigation, who declined to be quoted since he was not authorised to speak to the media.

A civil dispute between land owners is currently ongoing before a civil court in Goa.

The Goa Police hope to have custody of the brothers by early next week, people familiar with the investigation said, adding that Indian authorities were in close contact with their Thai counterparts to ensure the repatriation of the brothers at the earliest.

“Deportation procedures of Luthra brothers are currently under process and Goa Police is in continuous coordination with the central agencies,” the police said in a statement on Friday.

The authorities have said electrically detonated pyroguns shot off during a belly dancing programme likely caused the deadly blaze. A combination of factors — key safety lapses, including inadequate number of exits and use of pyroguns, a thatched roof and stacks of alcohol — intensified the fire, causing it to engulf the 300 square metre establishment in a matter of minutes.

Twenty of the victims were staffers at the club, while five were tourists. In the first information report at 9.30am on Sunday, Goa Police booked the brothers along with other unnamed individuals for culpable homicide not amounting to murder (section 105), for acts endangering the lives and personal safety of others (125 (a) (b)), and for negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter (section 287) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

On Sunday, four people were arrested – chief general manager of the club Rajiv Modak, 49; gate manager Priyanshu Thakur, 32 – both residents of Delhi; bar manager Rajveer Singhania, 32, and general manager Vivek Singh, 27 – both residents of Uttar Pradesh. On Monday, the police made a fifth arrest: Bharat Singh Kohli, 49, a resident of Punjabi Basti in New Delhi. And on Wednesday, police arrested co-owner Ajay Gupta from a private hospital in Delhi.

An official said that the police have recorded the statements of 50 witnesses so far. “Over 50 statements have been recorded so far of the persons connected with this incident which also includes officials, workers and victims,” the police official said.

The village chief Roshan Redkar and panchayat secretary Raghuvir Bagkar, whose roles are currently under a cloud over granting of permissions for the operation of the club from a premises that was illegally constructed, appeared before the police on Friday to record their statements.

On Friday, the hearing in their applications for anticipatory bail was adjourned after the Goa Police sought time to file their reply. “The Goa Police sought time to file a detailed reply, and the court has granted time until 16th December at 2:30pm for filing the reply and for arguments,” said Nitin Sardesai, lawyer for the applicant.

A parallel magisterial inquiry that is currently underway has also summoned officials including those who granted the establishment permissions to operate to depose before the inquiry committee.