Team Goemkarponn
MAPUSA: Gaurav and Saurav Luthra have been granted conditional bail by a court in connection with the December 6, 2025 Birch fire tragedy at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives. The development was confirmed on April 1 by their counsel, Advocate Parag Rao.
According to Rao, the court allowed bail on a surety of ₹50,000 along with an equivalent bail bond. He stated that while the order has been pronounced, a detailed copy of the judgment is yet to be received. The bail comes with standard conditions imposed by the court.
Addressing questions regarding a separate case involving alleged forgery of a No Objection Certificate (NOC), Rao clarified that the defence has opted not to pursue anticipatory bail. Instead, a regular bail application has been filed before the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), Mapusa.
The Luthra brothers are currently in police custody in connection with the fake NOC case. On March 30, the JMFC court remanded them to five days of police custody to facilitate further investigation.
The duo was arrested on December 16, 2025, at Delhi Airport by Goa Police after being deported from Thailand. Investigators allege that they had left the country soon after the fire incident at the Birch venue, located at the Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora.
Authorities have charged the brothers with culpable homicide and forgery of government documents, alleging that falsified permissions were used to operate the establishment. The case has seen significant progress, with police filing a chargesheet exceeding 4,000 pages.
The incident remains one of the deadliest fire tragedies in Goa’s recent history, and the legal proceedings continue across multiple cases linked to the disaster.
