Goa nightclub fire: Police file chargesheet, 13 accused named, 306 witnesses listed

PAnaji: The Goa constabulary on th filed a chargesheet naming 13 people in connectedness with the devastating go off at birch tree by Romeo Lane in north Goa’s Arpora, where 25 people were killed on the intervening night of December 6 and 7.The 4,150-page chargesheet, which lists 306 witnesses, was submitted before the Mapusa Judicial Magistrate. The accused, including the Luthra brothers, were produced before the court on Thursday and handed copies of the chargesheet.The chargesheet names Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, co-owners and directors of M/s Being GS Hospitality Arpora LLP, who are currently in judicial custody, along with 11 others, including the club’s chief general manager Rajiv Modak (49) and gate manager Priyanshu Thakur (32) from Delhi; bar manager Rajveer Singhania (32) and general manager Vivek Singh (27) from Uttar Pradesh; Bijay Kumar Singh, who was arrested from Jharkhand; and Ajay Gupta, a business partner of the Luthras.Also Read: Goa nightclub fire: Court rejects Luthra brothers’ bail pleaArpora sarpanch Roshan Redkar and panchayat secretary Raghuvir Bagkar, who are also currently in custody, and UK citizen Surinder Kumar Khosla, the current owner of the property leased by the Luthra brothers, have also been named as accused, though he is absconding.Bharat Singh Kohli, a manager who claimed he was not responsible for the day-to-day operations of the club, was not named as an accused.According to the chargesheet, the accused committed offences under Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 125(a)(b) (act done so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others), negligent conduct with respect to fire and combustible matter, Section 336 (forgery), 338 (using a forged document as genuine), 340(2) and 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).The chargesheet alleges that on account of the “irresponsible acts of the accused persons”, 25 people were killed, causing “irreparable loss which shattered 25 families, reflecting gross criminal negligence and utter disregard for human life and complete failure of the accused to adhere to statutory and safety norms.”The chargesheet also mentions that “all the managers” who were arrested said they were in contact with the Luthras and had received “calls from them indicating that they were aware of the seriousness of the incident and casualties before fleeing.”The brothers had fled to Phuket in Thailand within hours of the blaze ripping through the structure, but were deported after their passports were suspended and they were detained by Thai authorities.The chargesheet further states that the Luthras, along with Ajay Gupta and Surinder Kumar Khosla, “fraudulently inserted the words ‘H. No. 502/1 RT-8’ by forging the instrument of licence and obtaining permissions from different authorities.”The structure from which the nightclub was operating was illegal, built on a saltpan, surrounded by water on all four sides, with only a single narrow entrance and the other exit locked at all times, and had no house number issued to it. The investigation revealed that the accused used a forged house number of a structure belonging to a hotel on a neighbouring plot to apply for licences such as a trade licence from the village panchayat, excise licence, and consent to operate, among others.Such acts were done in “connivance” with the local sarpanch and panchayat secretary, according to the chargesheet.The chargesheet also said the accused ran the establishment without fire clearances, equipment, or staff training despite having a large kitchen and a capacity to serve 150 people.Twenty-five people, including four from a Delhi family, were killed and six injured after a massive fire tore through the nightclub — Birch by Romeo Lane — in the coastal village of Arpora in north Goa around 11.45 pm on Saturday.Authorities have said that even as the fire was gutting the structure, the two brothers booked tickets to Thailand at 1.17 am on Sunday and flew out at 5.30 am the same day. A lookout notice against them was issued roughly 24 hours later.Authorities have also said that electrically detonated pyroguns set off during a belly dancing programme likely caused the deadly blaze. A combination of factors — key safety lapses, including an inadequate number of exits and the use of pyroguns, a thatched roof, and stacks of alcohol — intensified the fire, causing it to engulf the 300-square-metre establishment within minutes.