Exclusive Pic Of Luthras At Delhi Airport, Being Taken To Goa To Face Charges

Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, who were brought back to India from Thailand - where they fled hours after a deadly fire broke out at their nightclub in Goa this month, are being taken to Goa today to face further charges. The Patiala House Court had allowed the Goa Police's application seeking transit remand for two days of the two brothers - the owners of 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub.

NDTV accessed photos of the Luthra brothers sitting at the Delhi Airport during their transit to Goa.

While one of them was seen wearing a white hoodie, another can be seen with a mask, a cap, and a black sweatshirt. They were sitting in the waiting area near the gates with other officials.

They will be produced before a court in Goa upon landing.

The two brothers, against whom a case of culpable homicide and negligence is registered, were brought back to India on an IndiGo flight last afternoon.

They had fled to Thailand's Phuket hours after the tragedy on an IndiGo flight. They were allegedly attending a wedding in Delhi at the time of the incident. As soon as the Luthras got information about the fire and the potential scale of damage, Saurabh and Gaurav called their office in Delhi's Model Town and asked their staff to book flight tickets. They then rushed to their home, picked up documents, and fled. The two were detained in Thailand on December 11 after they stepped out of their hotel in Thailand for a meal.

The Goa club tragedy

A musical night at the Goa nightclub turned deadly earlier this month, with videos showing huge flames and smoke at the scene. Another video shows a dancer grooving to the beats of the Sholay chartbuster 'Mehbooba Mehbooba' when the first flames appear on the ceiling.

Preliminary investigation into the tragedy has revealed that the violation of safety norms turned the nightclub into a tinderbox. According to officials, the club had no emergency exit, no functional fire extinguishers or safety alarms, and the access road was too narrow for fire engines. Despite several warnings, the club management did not fix the security lapses. The club was also operating without proper permissions and licenses, an FIR mentioned.

Four staff members of the nightclub have been arrested so far, including the manager. A third partner of the club, Ajay Gupta, was also arrested in Delhi.

Gupta earlier claimed that he was a "silent partner"; however, the investigation revealed that he was actually the most active co-owner. He was in Goa at the time of the incident, but fled Delhi hours into the tragedy. He was arrested from the Institute of Brain and Spine in Delhi's Lajpat Nagar last week - where he had admitted himself to evade arrest.