Goa nightclub fire: Another venture of Arpora promoters sealed; owners, event organisers booked

A shack belonging to the promoters of ill-fated Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, where a devastating fire on Sunday killed 25 persons, has been sealed, an official said.

District officials visited shack 'Romeo Lane' at Vagator beach this evening, after which the sealing action was taken, he informed. The shack had come up illegally on government owned property, sources said.

Earlier, police registered an FIR against two owners of Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Goa, its manager, and event organisers and detained the sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa panchayat, a senior official said.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has already ordered a magisterial inquiry into the fire.

The fire broke out at the nightclub after midnight. The popular party venue in Arpora village, located approximately 25 km from the state capital, Panaji, opened last year.

The deceased included four tourists and 14 staff members, while the identity of the remaining seven was yet to be established, the police said.

“Police registered an FIR against Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra, the owners of Birch by Romeo Lane Nightclub, under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita,” a senior police officer told PTI.

An FIR was also registered against the manager of the club and the event organisers, he said.

Police detained the sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa Panchayat, Roshan Redkar, who had issued a trade license for the premises in 2013.

Redkar said the club was run by Saurav Luthra, who had a dispute with his partner.

“There was a dispute between them, and they had filed a complaint against each other with the panchayat. We had inspected the premises and found that they did not have the permission to construct the club,” he said.

The panchayat had issued a demolition notice, which was stayed by officials of the Directorate of Panchayats, Redkar claimed.

The Chief Minister stated that he was closely reviewing the situation arising from the tragic fire incident.

“All six injured persons are in a stable condition and are receiving the best medical care. I have ordered a magisterial inquiry into the entire incident to identify the cause and fix responsibility,” he said.

A preliminary inquiry has indicated that the fire started on the first floor of the club, and due to congestion and small doors, the customers could not move out, the CM said.

“Some of them rushed to the ground floor and got trapped there,” he said.