‘Want justice, nothing less’: Delhi woman who lost 3 sisters, husband in Goa nightclub fire
“Will two lakh rupees bring back my family? Will it return my sisters? Have some shame. I do not want any compensation. I just want justice,” Bhavna Joshi said.
The blaze that burned through Goa's nightclub, Birch by Romeo Lane, last Saturday night was small at first, but it grew within seconds, according to to Bhavna Joshi, who lost her husband and three sisters in the fire. "In seconds, the fire became huge and uncontrollable. My husband and my sisters were trapped in it. I saw everything," she said.
"We were enjoying ourselves. Everything was normal. Suddenly, there was fire," she recalled, speaking to news agency PTI earlier this week at her Delhi home. “It was small at first, but they could not control it,” she said, unable to hold back tears.
Her husband Vinod Kumar (43) and three sisters, Kamla Joshi (42), Anita Joshi (41) and Saroj Joshi (39), were among the 25 people killed in the massive fire. Bhavna, who was also at the nightclub, survived the fire with injuries.
The authorities have said electrically detonated pyroguns shot off during a belly dancing programme likely caused the deadly blaze. A combination of factors — key safety lapses, including inadequate number of exits and use of pyroguns, a thatched roof and stacks of alcohol — intensified the fire, causing it to engulf the 300-square-metre establishment in a matter of minutes.
Bhavna Joshi sat in a corner of her home in northeast Delhi's Karawal Nagar when the PTI reporter interviewed her on Thursday. Her voice stiffened when she spoke of calls she'd been receiving from the Goa collector's office, said the report.
"I just want justice for my family. Nothing more, nothing less," she said.
"They keep asking for bank details. They say they will give us two lakh rupees," she said, “Are we beggars? Will two lakh rupees bring back my family? Will it return my sisters? Have some shame. I do not want any compensation. I want justice."
‘Lost everything in that fire’
Her elderly mother, Meena, said the magnitude of her loss is too large to express. "I lost my children. I lost everything in that fire. What do you expect from a mother who lost four children at this age?" she said.
"The culprits must not get away with bail or just a fine. They must face the consequences. I only want justice," Meena added.
Naveen, Kamla's husband and the elder brother of Vinod, accused the authorities of negligence. "There are many restaurants and clubs where rules are not followed. Action should be taken so this does not happen again. Today, it happened to us. Tomorrow, it may be someone else," he said.
Their relatives earlier said the four sisters had been planning their Goa vacation for months, hoping for a few days of rest now that their children were older and no longer wholly dependent on them. Vinod had accompanied them so they would feel safe and supported during the journey.
Owners caught in Thailand, probe reveals lapses
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts are on to bring Delhi-based entrepreneurs Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, the brothers who co-own Birch by Romeo Lane, from Thailand. They had fled to Phuket from Delhi within hours after learning of the fire in the early hours of December 7.
The police probe in Goa has now revealed they applied for permission to open their club in Arpora, North Goa, using a forged copy of a land agreement. The investigators plan to confront the brothers about this and other revelations when they receive custody likely early next week.
Their bail plea was rejected by a court in Delhi even as they claimed they could be “lynched in Goa”; now a court in Goa will her their plea.
A joint investigation team will soon bring the accused back to India, chief minister Pramod Sawant had said on Thursday. “Deportation procedures of Luthra brothers are currently under process and Goa Police is in continuous coordination with the central agencies,” the police said in a statement on Friday.
Twenty of the victims were staffers at the club, while five were tourists.
A parallel magisterial inquiry that is currently underway has also summoned officials including those who granted the establishment permissions to operate to depose before the inquiry committee.
