Surendra Koli, the main suspect in the 2006 Nithari case, also known as the 2005–2006 Noida serial killings case, was exonerated by the Allahabad High Court on Monday. A second defendant, Moninder Singh Pandher, was also cleared by the court in two cases in which the trial court had given him a death sentence. For its decision, the Allahabad High Court found a lack of evidence.
Due to allegations of rape and murder, Surendra Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher have received death sentences.Pandher was found guilty of raping and killing Pinki Sarkar as well as multiple other rape, murder, pornographic, and cannibalism offences.
On December 29, 2006, the skeleton remains of eight children were found in a drain below Pandher’s home in Nithari, Noida, bringing attention to the shocking crimes.
More skeleton bones were discovered when more digging was done and drains were searched in the vicinity of Pandher’s residence. The majority of these bones belonged to young girls and underprivileged children who had vanished from the neighbourhood.
The CBI took up the investigation within ten days, and their search turned up additional bones. Koli is imprisoned in Ghaziabad, while Pandher is housed in a jail in Noida.
2006- Bodies found near the drainage
Moninder Singh Pandher and his domestic helper Surendra Koli are suspected of committing the Noida serial killings between 2005 and 2006.
Later, after claiming to have discovered a decomposing hand in a drain, locals called the police. After sexually abusing six youngsters and a lady named “Payal” who was 20 years old, Koli, under the pseudonym Satish, subsequently admitted to murdering them all.
The police detained both Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher on December 26 and 27, respectively, in relation to the disappearance of “Payal.” Following Koli’s admission, the police began excavating a neighbouring plot of property and found the remains of the kids.
2007- Confession of the convicted duo
Child pornography: The discovery of sexual literature and a laptop computer with a webcam by the investigative teams instantly sparked suspicions of the existence of an international child pornography ring. The allegations against Pandher were eventually dropped after it was discovered that the pictures of him with naked youngsters that the police had uncovered belonged to his granddaughters.
Organ trafficking and cannibalism: The police searched the home of a doctor who resided in the principal accused’s community after first suspecting an organ trade motive for the killings. The doctor was suspected of committing a comparable act in 1998, but the court cleared him of all charges that same year, according to the police.
Following a narcoanalysis and brain mapping tests, Koli gave his boss Pandher the all-clear by claiming that strangling was the cause of all fatalities. Pandher was accused of womanising and being sad.
2009- Convicted by the court
A special CBI court found Koli and Pandher guilty of raping and killing 14-year-old Rimpa Haldar, one of the victims, on February 13, 2009, and gave them the death penalty.
Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli were both awarded the death penalty since the case was deemed to be among the “rarest of rare.”
2014 – Appeal for mercy petitions not accepted
After receiving a death sentence, Pandher and Koli petitioned for compassion. Their requests for compassion were denied in 2014 by the late Pranab Mukherjee, the president of India.
But in September of the same year, the court delayed their execution. The Supreme Court modified Koli’s death sentence to life in prison in September 2014.
2015- Death sentence changed
The Allahabad High Court modified Surender Koli’s death sentence to life in prison in January 2015 due to “inordinate delay” in determining his mercy appeal. The decision was rendered by a division bench that included Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P K S Baghel.
2017- Capital punishment awarded again
Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli were given the death penalty by a CBI special court in Ghaziabad for their roles in one of the murder cases. The court handed down the punishment in the case involving the rape and murder of a 25-year-old helper.
The victim was a domestic helper who vanished on October 12, 2006, according to information the CBI provided to the court. According to the agency, she was identified using the clothes she had on when the human remains were discovered in the area behind Pandher’s home.
2022- Koli awarded death penalty
The death penalty was imposed on Surendra Koli by a special CBI court in Ghaziabad. The accused was found guilty of murder and given the death penalty by the court.
In the case, the judge also imposed a punishment of $62,000 on Koli and a sentence of $4,000 on Moninder Singh Pandher, according to authorities.
Pandher was charged with immoral trafficking, but Koli was found guilty of murder, rape, conspiracy, and deleting evidence of a crime. More than ten instances had resulted in death sentences for Koli. In three cases, Pandher received a death sentence as well.
2023- Pandher, Koli rewarded acquittal
The Allahabad HC announced their acquittal due to insufficient evidence.
