The Allahabad High Court on Monday acquitted Surendra Koli, the prime accused in the Nithari killings, in 12 cases while his co-accused Moninder Singh Pandher was acquitted in two cases due to lack of evidence.
Koli was sentenced to death in over 10 cases in connection with the Nithari killings while Pandher was awarded the death penalty in two cases, in which he was acquitted today
While Allahabad HC has acquitted Koli in 12 cases, his death sentence has been upheld in one case, whereas in another case, based on delay, it has been converted into life imprisonment.
For the unversed, the CBI had registered 16 cases against Surendra Koli for the alleged murder, abduction, and rape of women and destruction of evidence and Pandher, who was Koli’s employer at the time of the crime, was booked in a case of trafficking.
Pandher and his domestic help Koli were accused of abducting and raping children and women from nearby villages of Noida’s Nithari, committing acts of cannibalism, and then disposing of their bodies in a drain in the locality.
Here’s a brief timeline of the gruesome Nithari killings case against Koli:
December 2006: This is when the news of the brutal murders first came to light when human remains were found in a drain near a house in Noida, which was owned by Pandher.
December 29, 2006: The police recovered some evidence, including human skeletons and the belongings of some missing girls from the drain near Pandher’s residence.
January 5, 2007: Pandher and Koli were taken to Gandhinagar for an extensive narco-analysis Test by Uttar Pradesh police.
January 7, 2007: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over investigations in the case. The UP police filed 19 FIRs against Pandher and Koli and the CBI filed chargesheets in 16 of them till 2009.
January 25, 2007: A group of lawyers and bystanders attacked Pandher and Koli when they were being taken to a court in Ghaziabad, next to Noida.
March 22, 2007: The CBI gave a clean chit to Pandher but indicted Koli as a cannibal, charging him with the rape of 20-year-old Payal. Pandher was given clean chit in another case later.
May 11, 2007: A CBI court asked the agency to take a fresh look at Pandher’s role. Till now, the CBI has filed 16 charge sheets, and the court has framed charges of rape and murder against Pandher in six cases.
February 13, 2009: Koli and Pandher were convicted and sentenced to death by a special CBI court for the rape and murder of one of the many victims.
September 2009: Pandher and Koli were sentenced to death by the trial court. The Allahabad High Court acquitted Pandher of the crime but confirmed Koli’s death sentence.
January 7, 2010: The Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of Surinder Koli.
July 22, 2017: CBI court convicts Mohinder Pandher, and Surinder Koli in Pinky case.
July 24, 2017: Pandher, Koli sentenced to death for serial rape and murder.
October 16, 2023: The Allahabad High Court on Monday acquitted Surendra Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher in the infamous Nithari serial killings.
Who is Surender Koli, The Beast of Noida
Surendra Koli worked as a domestic help at Moninder Singh Pandher’s house – who is co-accused in the case. The two allegedly raped and murdered children and women at Pandher’s Noida home.
In the CBI investigation, it was found that Koli had allegedly killed several girls, chopping their bodies to pieces before throwing them in the backyard outside their house.
CBI joint director Arun Kumar told the court that Koli cooked the breast of the first woman he murdered and ate it. He ate the arm of the second woman and the liver of his third victim.
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