Brothers held in Thailand after deadly Goa nightclub fire
Two brothers linked to a nightclub in Goa, where a fire killed 25 people, have been detained in Thailand, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Thursday, identifying them as co-owners of the venue.
Police moved after a Delhi court earlier on Thursday declined to grant the pair interim protection from arrest. At that hearing, their lawyer said Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra were in Thailand on a business trip and argued they were not owners but license holders.
The fire tore through the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora around midnight on Saturday.
“We have detained them today in Thailand. We will bring them to Goa within a short span of time,” Sawant told reporters in Panaji, the state capital.
Lawyer Tanvir Ahmed Mir said he could not immediately confirm the detention, but told Reuters the brothers were being targeted by a “vengeful government”. He said they had travelled to Thailand while working to set up a restaurant in Phuket.
Indian authorities have arrested six other people so far, including five employees of the nightclub. The brothers’ lawyer told the court that staff managed day-to-day operations and said the Luthras should not be held responsible.
Officials have announced compensation for the victims’ families. Those who died included at least four tourists and 14 members of the club’s staff.
Goa, a coastal state popular with overseas visitors, drew about 5.5 million tourists in the first half of the year, including 271,000 from abroad, according to government data.
Reuters
