Goa cops arrest Luthra brothers in Delhi on arrival from Thailand

The 10-day-long cat and mouse game between Indian law enforcement agencies and the Luthra brothers finally ended on Tuesday as their aircraft touched down at Delhi airport at 1.45pm. The duo — Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra — was arrested by a team of Goa police at immigration.

They will be flown to Goa on Wednesday morning after a Delhi court on Tuesday granted a two-day transit remand.


“We have arrested Saurabh and Gaurav,” Goa director general of police (DGP) Alok Kumar told TOI.

The brothers were sent back to India from Bangkok on an ‘emergency certificate’ on Tuesday morning as their Indian passports were suspended by the ministry of external affairs shortly after they flew to Thailand.

Anjuna police will produce the Luthra brothers before a judicial magistrate first class (JMFC) at Mapusa on Wednesday to seek their custody for investigation.

The duo had fled India on an IndiGo flight on Dec 7, hours after a deadly blaze led to the death of 25 people at their Arpora-based nightclub, Birch by Romeo Lane. They were staying at the Indigo hotel in Phuket and returned to India on an IndiGo flight as well.

On Tuesday morning, the duo was spotted at the Bangkok airport wearing masks and surrounded by immigration security officials. They were allotted seats on either side at the very back of the aircraft with security personnel accompanying them. They were produced at the Patiala House Court in New Delhi at around 6.45pm where Goa police sought three days’ custody. The JMFC granted two days of transit remand. They were medically examined and taken back to the airport after that. The brothers folded hands and nodded when reporters asked them why they fled the country.

“After taking custody of the deported Luthra brothers in New Delhi and on obtaining a transit remand, Goa police is bringing both the accused to the state. A police team is likely to land in Goa along with deported and arrested accused at around 11am on Wednesday,” Goa police’s public relation officer DySP Nilesh Rane said.

Goa police had registered an FIR against them under various sections of the BNS, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Last week, a local court in Delhi had rejected the transit anticipatory bail of both the accused in connection with the case.

Once a lookout notice was issued, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) decided to impound their passports, which meant that they were staying without valid travel documents in Thailand. India and Thailand signed a formal extradition treaty in 2013, which came into force on June 29, 2015.

The duo was detained last week by Thai authorities for staying in that country illegally. A special team had subsequently gone to Phuket on Saturday to complete the deportation process. The brothers were then brought to the Bangkok detention centre. The Indian embassy in Thailand consequently issued an emergency certificate — a one-way travel document — to the Luthras since their passport was suspended by the Indian govt.

So far, Goa police have arrested Gurgaon resident Ajay Gupta, 55, a partner of the Luthra brothers, New Delhi natives Rajiv Modak, 49, chief general manager, and Priyanshu Thakur, 32, gate manager, along with UP natives Rajveer Singhania, 32, bar manager, Vivek Singh, 27, general manager, and Bharat Kohli from Delhi.

When the fire broke out at the nightclub at around 11.45pm on Dec 6, there were more than 150 tourists attending an event. A preliminary investigation by police and the directorate of fire services concluded that the fire broke out after electric firecrackers struck the wooden ceiling during the event.