PANAJI: Pradeep Ghari Amonkar, the original owner of the land on which the fire-damaged nightclub in North Goa was located, on Friday alleged that influential people were protecting Surendra Kumar Khosla, one of the accused in the case.
Amonkar claimed that the police allowed British national Surendra Khosla to leave for the UK when a fire broke out at the Birch by Romeo Lane Club in Arpora village on December 6, in which at least 25 people were killed.
He also said that Khosla is involved in a legal dispute with him over the ownership of the land and that he has been fighting a court battle to get the property back.
The Goa Police have so far arrested eight people in the case, including club owners Saurabh Luthra, Gaurav Luthra and Ajay Gupta. Khosla has been named as an accused in the FIR registered in connection with the incident.
According to a senior police official, Khosla is currently absconding and efforts are on to trace him. The investigation into the case is ongoing.
