Goa nightclub fire: Delhi court allows two-day transit remand of Luthra brothers

New Delhi, Dec 16 A Delhi court on Tuesday allowed the Goa Police a two-day transit remand of Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra, co-owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub where 25 people were killed in a fire on December 6.

The Goa Police produced both the accused before Judicial Magistrate Twinkle Chawla in the Patiala House Court to seek transit remand of three days.

Allowing two days of transit remand, the court also directed the police officials to provide prescribed medicines to both accused.

The investigating officer informed the court that they will be taken to Goa by flight at the earliest.

Both the accused were taken to court in two separate police vehicles amid heavy security.

This comes as both of them landed in India and were arrested by the Goa Police after the Thai authorities deported the Luthra brothers to India.

They were also taken to the Safdarjang Hospital for their medical checkup.

The deportation comes amid an ongoing probe into the deadly blaze, which triggered widespread outrage and led to scrutiny over alleged safety violations and lapses by the nightclub management.

The Luthras, co-owners of the nightclub located in Arpora in North Goa, left for Phuket in Thailand shortly after the fire incident.

An Interpol Blue Corner Notice was issued against them.

The two were detained by the Thai authorities in Phuket on December 11 following the intervention of the Indian mission, which was in close touch with the Thai government in the case.

Several videos circulating online showed the Luthra brothers at the Bangkok airport ahead of their departure. They were handed over to the Indian authorities on arrival for further legal proceedings in the case.

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

Mumbai, Dec 9 A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed before the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court seeking a court-monitored probe into the fire incident at the 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub that killed 25 persons.

The petition, filed by social activist Aishwarya Salgaonkar, said the nightclub was operating without a valid construction licence and despite several demolition orders issued against it.

There has been a "systematic failure" on the part of the authorities to act against the club, the plea said.

The petition was mentioned before a bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ashish Chavan on Tuesday seeking urgent hearing.

The court said it would list the matter for hearing on December 16.

Birch by Romeo Lane, a popular party venue in Arpora village in North Goa, turned into a death trap on December 7 as a massive fire tore through the premises, killing 25 people, most of them staff and a few tourists.

The petition said Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has himself admitted that the nightclub had not followed fire safety norms, and that the entrance and exit doors were congested and there was no proper ventilation, due to which most of the victims died of suffocation.

"This shows a shocking failure of municipal, panchayat and district authorities to enforce even the most basic statutory requirements intended to protect public life," the PIL said.

There has been a systematic failure to initiate action against illegal constructions, clubs operating without mandatory licences and in absence of fire-safety audits, the plea said, adding that unless the court interferes, such establishments shall continue to operate and claim innocent lives in case of any untoward incidents.

The petition sought the HC to set up a court-monitored Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the fire incident and to also constitute a judicial commission headed by a retired HC judge to inquire into the incident.

It also sought a direction to the government to conduct a state-wide fire safety audit of all night-clubs, restaurants, bars, hotels and beach shacks and to demolish all such structures that do not have the requisite permissions.