Saturday, March 29, 2025
How Difficult Will It Be to Bring Goa Nightclub Owners Back from Thailand? A Look at India’s Top 5 Economic Fugitives
New Delhi | December 9, 2025
The owners of Goa’s Birch Bay Romeo Lane nightclub fled India for Thailand within hours of a devastating fire at the venue that claimed 25 lives. Their sudden exit has raised a crucial question: how difficult will it be for Indian authorities to bring them back to face justice?
A massive fire broke out at the Birch Bay Romeo Lane nightclub in Goa, resulting in the deaths of 25 people. Soon after the tragedy, the club’s owners, Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra, quietly left the country and escaped to Phuket, Thailand, a popular tourist destination. Their flight has sparked outrage and renewed debate about the challenges India faces in extraditing accused individuals from foreign countries.
Extraditing fugitives from another country is never easy. Accused individuals often approach local courts, seek asylum, or use legal loopholes to delay or block their return. However, in this case, India does have a legal pathway.
India and Thailand signed an extradition treaty in May 2013, during former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s official visit to Thailand. This treaty allows both countries to hand over individuals facing criminal charges. Legally, this makes extradition possible.
That said, there is a key procedural hurdle. The nightclub owners have not yet been formally declared fugitives. Declaring them as proclaimed offenders is the first essential step before India can formally initiate extradition proceedings. Only after this declaration can Indian authorities submit an official request to Thailand.
India has extradition treaties with around 50 countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Russia, Saudi Arabia, the UK, Switzerland, Malaysia, and South Africa. Despite these agreements, extradition often turns into a long-drawn legal battle.
In many cases, fugitives remain abroad for years due to appeals, health claims, or asylum petitions. Still, Indian agencies continue to pursue such cases, and in some instances, accused individuals have been brought back after prolonged legal efforts.
The nightclub case has once again drawn attention to India’s list of high-profile economic offenders. According to the government, 15 individuals have been declared fugitive economic offenders under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, causing losses of more than ₹57,000 crore to banks.
Here are some of the most prominent names:
Vijay Mallya
Kingfisher Airlines case
₹6,848 crore principal and ₹11,960 crore interest loss
Significant recovery already made, but extradition from the UK remains pending.
Nirav Modi
Punjab National Bank fraud of ₹6,799 crore
Limited recovery so far; fighting extradition proceedings abroad.
Mehul Choksi
Accused in the ₹13,500 crore PNB fraud
India is seeking his extradition from Belgium; the Belgian Supreme Court is hearing his appeal.
Lalit Modi
Alleged irregularities during his tenure as IPL commissioner
Living in the UK since 2010, contesting Indian efforts to bring him back.
Nitin Sandesara
Sterling Biotech banking fraud worth ₹5,700 crore
Declared a fugitive economic offender; fled via Dubai to Nigeria.
Other accused linked to major financial crimes include Chetan Sandesara, Dipti Sandesara, H. Tesh Kumar Patel, Sudarshan Venkataraman, and Ramanjam Sesharatnam.
While India’s extradition treaty with Thailand provides legal ground to seek the return of the Goa nightclub owners, the process is likely to be complex and time-consuming. Much will depend on how quickly Indian authorities declare them fugitives, file formal requests, and counter any legal resistance mounted in Thai courts.
For now, the case stands as yet another reminder of the difficulties India faces in ensuring accountability when accused individuals flee overseas.
