'Hit, abused...': Woman alleges assault at Luthras' demolished Goa club
What's the story
A Mumbai-based tourist, Vaibhav Chandel, has alleged that she and her family were assaulted by staff at a beach shack owned by the Luthra brothers in Goa. The incident took place on November 1 when Chandel and her cousins visited the club. She alleged that the manager of the club accused them of damaging property and called in bouncers who then chased and assaulted the group and prevented them from leaving the premises.
Woman
Woman recalls incident
Recalling the incident, she said, "I visited Romeo Lane in Vagator on November 1 with my cousins....The club is built in such a way that it is very suffocating. It has only one entry and one exit...So it is tough to enter and exit from that club." "The staff spoke to us rudely and behaved inappropriately. When we were leaving the club around 3:00am, a heavy chair was in our way. My cousin shifted it aside with his foot."
Attack
'You are damaging the furniture'
She claimed the staff got angry when her cousin moved the chair. "You are damaging the furniture," the staff told them. He then grabbed her cousin's collar. "When we tried to apologize and leave, he called all security personnel. They started chasing us....hit my sister on the chest, pushed her so badly that she fell down the stairs. They put up a barricade...When my brother removed it, a bouncer ran toward him with a rod and started hitting him badly."
Assault allegations
Chandel alleges staff used abusive language, physical assault
Chandel alleged that the staff used abusive language and physically assaulted her and her family members. She claimed a bouncer hit her brother with a rod when he tried to intervene. The group decided to approach the police the next morning after being injured in the incident. An FIR was filed against club staff members including manager Ajay Kavitkar and Junaid Ali for their involvement in this incident.
Legal proceedings
FIR filed against club staff, owners' names removed
The group decided to approach the police the next morning. An FIR was filed against club staff members including manager Ajay Kavitkar and Junaid Ali for their involvement in this incident. Chandel had initially named Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra in her complaint but their names were later removed from the FIR by authorities who said they weren't present during the incident. "If you don't take women's safety and tourist safety seriously, such incidents will keep happening in Goa," Chandel added.
Shack demolition
Demolition of 'Romeo Lane' beach shack
The 'Romeo Lane' beach shack was demolished earlier this week on orders of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant days after a massive fire at another nightclub, 'Birch By Romeo Lane,' owned by the Luthra brothers, killed 25 people. The restaurant was allegedly built illegally on land owned by the government. The demolition of the 198-square-meter wooden structure was carried out under police supervision.