Sign In
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
Panaji: The officials have identified all dead bodies and have started handing them over to the kin of the deceased, hours after the deadly fire at Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub claimed 25 lives. Among those who lost their lives in the tragic incident were five tourists and 20 members of the hotel staff.
Addressing the media in the evening, the state Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced the ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased. The CM also announced Rs 50,000 for the injured. He also said that the incident might have occurred due to firecrackers. He added that a panel has been formed to probe the incident, which will submit the report within the next seven days.
Late in the evening, the Goa Government suspended three senior officials, including the then Director of Panchayat, after the incident. The action against them was taken for their alleged role in allowing the facility to start operations in 2023.
Among officials who have been suspended are Siddhi Tushar Harlankar, who was Director of Panchayat, Dr Shamila Monteiro, who was the Member Secretary of the Goa State Pollution Control Board, and Raghuvir Bagkar, the Secretary of Village Panchayat Arpora-Nagoa.
Meanwhile, Goa BJP MLA Michael Lobo claimed that the licence of the nightclub was issued without any proper documentation “I have come to know that the panchayat issued a license for a restaurant and nightclub on these premises in 2023. The licence should be based on some documentation that is not there. There was no provisional No Objection Certificate from the pollution control board. Fire licence was given directly,” PTI quoted him as saying.
The incident led to a fresh political tug of war in Goa, with the Opposition parties demanding the resignation of Sawant. Blaming him for the incident, the Congress demanded his resignation on moral grounds.
The police earlier arrested the manager of the nightclub and three other staff members. It also booked the owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub and also detained Arpora-Nagoa sarpanch Roshan Redkar.
