MAPUSA
Goa Police have issued Look Out Notices (LOCs) against four individuals linked to the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub fire, including promoters Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, their business partner Ajay Gupta, and property owner Surinder Kumar Khosla.
A Blue Corner Notice has also been issued against the Luthra brothers, who have fled to Phuket, Thailand, DIG (Crime & Range) Varsha Sharma IPS said on Tuesday.
Addressing the media at Anjuna Police Station along with SP North Harish Madkaikar, Sharma said the investigation has expanded to include financial scrutiny.
“We are taking the help of institutions and are tracking the financial trail of the Luthra brothers,” she stated.
The trio – Gaurav, Saurabh and Ajay – are partners and owners of the nightclub, while Khosla, a British national, owns the land on which the establishment operated.
Police have already arrested five members of the club’s management team.
Sharma clarified that the Luthra brothers were not in Goa when the fire occurred.
“They were in Delhi,” she said, rejecting accusations of delay in police action. Efforts are underway through Interpol and the CBI to bring the absconding accused back to India.
“Regarding the owners and partners, we have opened LOCs and a Blue Corner Notice in coordination with the CBI and Interpol so that we can apprehend them,” Sharma said.
“The two who have fled – we are in the process of getting them back to India. Other accused are on our radar and teams have been sent to other states. We are after them,” she said.
The DIG confirmed that Ajay Gupta, a partner of the Luthras, is among the accused and that more arrests are expected.
Khosla, the property owner, is also named as an accused and warrants have been issued against all four.
Police said the investigation will continue to widen as financial movements and regulatory lapses are scrutinised.
