Police on Tuesday detained Ajay Gupta, one of the four owners of the nightclub 'Birch by Romeo Lane' in Goa, where a devastating fire claimed 25 lives last week. He is the sixth person to be held in connection with the case.
Gupta was detained from Delhi. Earlier, a lookout circular had been issued against him after the probe team failed to find him at his residence in the national capital when it visited there.
The police had already arrested five persons—the nightclub's chief general manager Rajiv Modak, general manager Vivek Singh, bar manager Rajiv Singhania, gate manager Riyanshu Thakur and employee Bharat Kohli.
#WATCH | Goa: A portion of the Romeo Lane restaurant located in the Vagator area is being demolished. It is owned by Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra, who also own Birch by Romeo Lane, where a fire tragedy claimed 25 lives on December 7.
— ANI (@ANI) December 9, 2025
"We will demolish the encroachment on the… pic.twitter.com/YoZHQgg6cy
Meanwhile, all three other owners of the nightclub—Saurabh Luthra, Gaurav Luthra and Surinder Kumar Khosla—are on the run.
Police have found that the Luthra brothers fled to Phuket in Thailand hours after the incident. The probe team is now coordinating with the Interpol Division of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to apprehend the duo.
A blue corner notice has been issued against the absconding accused
#WATCH | On the Goa nightclub fire tragedy, Goa Police DIG Varsha Sharma (C&R) says, "LoC has been issued against them (Luthra brothers). They are not in India. We are taking the help of Interpol and CBI to bring them back." pic.twitter.com/mCHvW3VieP
— ANI (@ANI) December 9, 2025
At least 25 people, including four tourists, were killed in the devastating fire that struck the nightclub in North Goa on Saturday night.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant alleged that the nightclub had not complied with fire safety norms. The popular party venue at Arpora village, around 25 km from the state capital Panaji, opened last year.
