4,350 pages detail deadly lapses; 13 accused named, but only two face heat
MAPUSA
The 4,350-page chargesheet filed by Anjuna Police in the December 6 inferno at Birch by Romeo Lane reads less like a routine prosecution document and more like a catalogue of systemic failure, negligence and alleged criminal complicity.
Nearly three months after the blaze that killed 25 people – 23 of them trapped in a windowless basement – police have pieced together what they describe as a chain of reckless decisions that turned a popular Arpora nightclub into a death trap.
A basement with no escape
According to the chargesheet filed before a Mapusa court, the club had only one functional exit – the main entrance door. There was no emergency exit on the ground floor or deck level.
The basement, where most of the victims were found, had neither an exit nor even a window. It comprised a kitchen and storeroom – spaces never meant to hold crowds in a crisis. When the fire spread, there was simply no route to escape.
Police have alleged that despite full knowledge of the risks, the management organised a “spectacular fireworks show” indoors without proper safeguards. The fire, police conclude, originated from this display.
No fire safety, no health clearance
The chargesheet states that at the time of the incident, the club did not possess a valid fire safety NOC or health clearance. It also allegedly lacked basic firefighting equipment.
Even more damning are claims that other permissions – including the trade licence – were obtained by fabricating documents. Police suggest the club continued operations despite regulatory deficiencies that should have shut it down.
13 accused, 305 witnesses
Police have named 13 accused in the case, including the partners of the hospitality firm that owned the club, senior managerial staff, event organisers and two former panchayat functionaries.
Among those arrested are the Luthra brothers, partners of the owning LLP, who were detained in Thailand and brought back to India. Several managers are also in judicial custody.
Property owner Surinder Kumar Khosla, a British national, remains absconding despite a non-bailable warrant, proclamation proceedings and a blue corner notice.
Notably, the only government officials named in the chargesheet are the then secretary and ex-sarpanch of the Arpora-Nagoa panchayat.
The absence of higher regulatory authorities in the list of accused is likely to raise questions in the coming days.
In building its case, police examined 305 witnesses, ranging from staff and survivors to officials and forensic experts.
Damaged CCTV, missing clarity
Police found CCTV cameras at the premises damaged. The devices have been sent for forensic examination to determine whether any footage can be salvaged. Whether critical evidence was destroyed deliberately or lost in the fire remains a key unanswered question.
The case has been registered under stringent provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, causing death by negligence, acts of omission and commission and forgery.
The chargesheet suggests that this was not a freak accident but the cumulative result of alleged regulatory evasion, safety violations and commercial recklessness.
The decision to hold an indoor fireworks show without adequate fire precautions, in a building with no emergency exits, proved catastrophic.
As the case moves toward trial, the chargesheet shifts the focus from the horror of that night to the larger question: how did a nightclub with no emergency exit, no fire clearance and allegedly fabricated documents continue to operate in one of Goa’s busiest tourist belts?
