Arpora fire tragedy: Luthras get interim protection till Dec 30; custody extended

PANAJI
The Additional Sessions Court in Mapusa has granted interim protection from arrest till December 30 to Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, co-owners of the ‘Birch by Romeo Lane’ nightclub, in a document forgery case registered against their firm, GS Hospitality Goa Arpora LLP. The court has also issued a notice to the investigating officer in the matter.
The relief comes even as the Mapusa Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) court on Friday extended the police custody of the Luthra brothers till December 29 in connection with the fire at their nightclub, in which 25 persons were killed and several others injured on December 6.
The accused were produced after completing 10 days of police custody, and the Anjuna Police sought a four-day extension to recover original documents linked to the probe, which the court allowed after the brothers assured their cooperation.
The Luthras were deported from Thailand on December 16, arrested in Delhi, and brought to Goa after a Delhi court granted a 48-hour transit remand. They were then produced before the Mapusa JMFC court on December 17, which granted five days of police custody.
In a related development, co-accused Bharat Kohli, in charge of daily operations at Birch by Romeo Lane, was granted conditional bail on execution of a personal bond of Rs 50,000.