The Goa government has gone on the offensive following the catastrophic fire at the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora that killed 25 people on December 6, by absconding after an absconding panchayat secretary and the disqualification of a sarpanch on rape charges of allowing the venue to function illegally.
Raghuvir Bagkar, the panchayat secretary, was dismissed from service, and Roshan Redkar, the sarpanch of Arpora village, was disqualified. The two officials are now absconding, and their applications to have anticipatory bail were declined by a local court. This was after a report by a magisterial inquiry, which indicated gross administrative failures and regulatory breaches associated with the tragedy.
The investigation showed that the Goa nightclub possessed several safety deficiencies, such as a lack of exit points, a thatched roof that was very prone to catching fire, and enormous amounts of alcohol stored, which enhanced the severity of the fire. The investigators pointed out that the club was built on an ecologically sensitive salt pan region where the commercial licences would not have been lawfully issued.
Director of Panchayats Mahadev Araundekar gave the orders of dismissal and disqualification following the review of the inquiry findings by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant. The report alleged that Bagkar had a malafide intent, gross negligence, and dereliction of duty, and that even a layperson could easily figure out the illegality of the club operations. It is also directed at assigning house numbers to unlicensed and uncertified illegal commercial buildings.
The probe also indicted the Arpora panchayat on the basis of not taking any action against demolition of the illegally built structure despite the several chances it had, including the fact that it had over 50 days of time during which the demolition order was suspended. The report suggested that the tragedy would have been avoided because of the timely enforcement of the regulations, which would have saved lives.
Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, the club owners, were arrested in December 16 at Delhi airport after being deported to Thailand where they had escaped.
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