Nithari massacre: Rape, cannibalism, murder ends with acquittal of Moninder Pandher, Surinder Koli. Explained – Gudstory

Surinder Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher were sentenced to death for rape and murder. Pandher was convicted in the Pinky Sarkar rape and murder case as well as several other cases of rape, murder, pornography and cannibalism.

The sensational murders came to light when skeletal remains of eight children were found in a drain behind Pandher’s house in Nithari, Noida, on December 29, 2006.

Further excavation and exploration of drains in the area around Pandher’s house revealed more skeletons. Most of these remains were those of poor children and young women who had gone missing from the area.

Within 10 days, the CBI took over the case and its search led to the recovery of more bones. While Pandher is lodged in Noida jail, Koli is in Ghaziabad jail.

Here is a timeline of events

2006- Murders revealed

As it was later revealed that the Noida serial murders were committed between 2005 and 2006 by Moninder Singh Pandher and his servant Surinder Koli.

The murders came into limelight when two residents of Nithari village reported that they knew the location of the remains of children who had gone missing over the past two years.

Both of them were also parents whose daughters had gone missing.

Residents later claimed to have found a rotten hand in the drain, following which they contacted the police.

Concerned parents of children missing for the last two years reached Nithari with photographs.

Koli, under the alias Satish, later confessed to killing six children and a 20-year-old woman named “Payal” after sexually assaulting them.

On 26 and 27 December respectively, Koli’s employer, Moninder Singh Pandher and Koli were taken into custody by the police in connection with the disappearance of “Payal”. After Koli’s confession, the police began excavating the surrounding land and discovered the bodies of the children.

Pandher and Koli were arrested on 29 December 2006.

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2007- Investigation revelations, confession

Child Pornography – Investigation teams had seized a laptop computer connected to a webcam as well as erotic literature, which immediately raised suspicions of the presence of an international child pornography racket. Police also found photographs of Pandher with naked children, which were later discovered to be of Pandher’s grandchildren, and the charges were dropped.

Organ trade and cannibalism – The police initially suspected the organ trade angle as the motive behind the murders and raided the house of a doctor who lived in the neighborhood of the main accused. Police revealed that the doctor was accused of a similar crime in 1998, although the court acquitted him the same year. The police were “surprised” when they learned of media reports that one of the accused had confessed to eating the victims’ liver and other body parts.

After brain mapping test and narco analysis, Koli gave a clean chit to his employer Pandher when he said that all the deaths were due to strangulation. He would rape the bodies before taking them to his private toilet and dismembering them.

Pandher was declared a womanizer and a depressive.

2009- Pandher and Koli sentenced

On 13 February 2009, Koli and Pandher were convicted and sentenced to death by a special CBI court for the rape and murder of 14-year-old Rimpa Halder, one of several victims.

Both the accused, Moninder Singh Pandher and Surinder Koli, were given the death penalty as the case was classified as the “rarest of the rare”.

2014 – mercy petitions rejected

Pandher and Koli have filed mercy petition after being awarded death sentence. In 2014, the then President of India, late Pranab Mukherjee, rejected his mercy petitions.

However, in September of that year the court stayed his execution. In September 2014, the Supreme Court commuted Koli’s death sentence to life imprisonment.

2015- Death penalty was changed to life imprisonment.

In January 2015, Surendra Koli’s death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment by the Allahabad High Court on the grounds of “inordinate delay” in deciding his mercy petition. A division bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PKS Baghel delivered this verdict.

2017- Pandher, Koli were again sentenced to death.

A special CBI court in Ghaziabad awarded death sentence to Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli in a murder case. The court has given this punishment in the case of rape and murder of a 25 year old maid.

This was the ninth case in which Koli was convicted. This was also the third case in which both Pandher and Koli were convicted by the court.

The CBI had told the court that the victim was a domestic help who had gone missing on October 12, 2006. The agency had said that he was identified from the clothes he was wearing along with the human remains found in the area behind Pandher’s house.

2022- Koli was given death sentence

The special CBI court of Ghaziabad had sentenced Surinder Koli to death. The court announced death sentence against the accused on murder charges.

The judge sentenced Moninder Singh Pandher to seven years in the case and also imposed a fine. 62,000 more on Koli Officials said, Rs 4,000 was charged on Pandher.

While Koli was convicted of murder, rape, conspiracy and destroying evidence of a crime, Pandher was accused of immoral trafficking. Koli was earlier awarded death penalty in more than 10 cases. Pandher was also sentenced to death in three cases.

2023- Pandher, Koli Bari

Allahabad HC acquitted both citing lack of evidence

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Updated: October 16, 2023, 03:54 PM IST