An appeal has been lodged in the Supreme Court challenging the acquittal of Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli in connection with the Nithari Killings. These horrific murders came to light in December 2006, capturing widespread public attention following the discovery of numerous skeletons in a drain close to a residence in Nithari village, Noida
On Friday, the Supreme Court requested a response from the Uttar Pradesh government regarding a petition challenging the Allahabad High Court’s decision to acquit Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli, the two individuals accused in the horrifying Noida Nithari killings [Pappu Lal vs Surendra Koli and anr].
A panel consisting of Justices BR Gavai, Satish Chandra Sharma, and Sandeep Mehta also served notice to the acquitted individuals, who were previously on death row for their involvement in the murder of numerous girls in Noida notoriously called as Nithari Killings or Nithari Kaand. This followed their acquittal by the High Court in October of the previous year.
The Court addressed an appeal filed by Pappu Lal, the father of one of the victimized girls.
The Allahabad High Court acquitted Pandher and his domestic help, Surendra Koli, in several cases related to the Nithari killings. It overturned the death penalty handed down to them by the trial court, acquitting Koli in 12 cases and Pandher in 2, where they were previously convicted and sentenced to death.
This prompted an immediate appeal to the apex court, arguing that the High Court erred in disregarding medical evidence and the judicial confession of the accused, among other issues. The prosecution, despite relying on circumstantial evidence, had purportedly established the guilt of the now-acquitted individuals beyond a reasonable doubt.
Senior Advocate Geeta Luthra, along with advocates Rakesh Kumar Shivani Luthra Lohiya, Asmita Narula, and Apoorva Maheshwari, represented the father of one of the deceased girls.
The Nithari Killings occurred between 2005 and 2006, gaining public attention in December 2006 when skeletons were found in a drain near a house in Nithari village, Noida, owned by Moninder Singh Pandher, with Koli as his domestic help.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the case, filing multiple case information reports. Koli faced charges including murder, abduction, rape, and destruction of evidence in all cases, while Pandher was charged in one related to immoral trafficking.
Koli was convicted of multiple rapes and murders, receiving death sentences in over 10 cases. In July 2017, a special CBI court found Pandher and Koli guilty of killing a 20-year-old woman, Pinki Sarkar, sentencing them to death.
Earlier, in 2009, the Allahabad High Court convicted Koli but acquitted Pandher due to insufficient evidence in the murder and rape of another victim, 14-year-old Rimpa Haldar. Koli’s appeal against this decision was dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2011, with a subsequent review plea also rejected in 2014.
However, on January 28, 2015, the High Court commuted Koli’s sentence to life imprisonment due to an extended delay in deciding his mercy petition. In the challenged judgment, the High Court criticized investigating agencies, including the Uttar Pradesh Police and the CBI, for a “casual and perfunctory” investigation, suggesting a possible involvement of organ trade in Nithari Killings is beyond Koli as the lone perpetrator.
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