The Nithari serial killings case, which shocked the country nearly two decades ago, has once again come into focus after Surendra Koli, who was acquitted in the final case against him in 2025, was found dead in Haridwar on Friday.
Koli, 50, was found hanging at a rented tea stall on Sapt Sarovar Road in the Bhupatwala area of Haridwar. Police said a forensic team examined the scene and that the death appeared prima facie to be a case of suicide. The body was taken into custody and panchanama and post-mortem proceedings were initiated.
However, Jhabbu Lal, whose 15-year-old daughter was among the victims of the Nithari killings, alleged that Koli was murdered and questioned the police’s preliminary finding of suicide.
“Surendra Koli has been murdered; he has not died by suicide,” said Lal, 64.
Lal questioned why Koli would have taken his own life after spending several months outside prison following his release.
“If he had died by suicide in jail, it could be understood that he was depressed. But he took his life after being released and spending several months outside? This raises questions,” he said.
Lal further alleged that Koli may have been killed because he was about to disclose important information. He also maintained that Koli was not the main culprit in the Nithari case and alleged that businessman Moninder Singh Pandher, at whose Sector 31 house Koli worked as a domestic help, was the main accused.
Police have not confirmed the murder allegation and said the circumstances surrounding Koli’s death remain under investigation.
From Nithari’s ‘House of Horrors’ to Haridwar
The Nithari case dates back to 2005, when residents of Nithari in Noida’s Sector 31 began reporting that children and young women were going missing. Complaints were filed with the police, but the investigation remained slow.
A major breakthrough came in 2006 when a human hand was found by children playing in an enclosed space between bungalow D-5 and the adjacent property D-6.
In May that year, a man lodged a police complaint about his missing daughter, saying she was last seen near D-5, which belonged to businessman Moninder Singh Pandher. Koli worked there as a domestic help.
An FIR was lodged only in June after the man protested near the house of a senior Uttar Pradesh police officer. The missing woman’s phone was later found with a local rickshaw puller, who claimed to have received it from Koli. Koli was arrested but was later released on bail.
In December 2006, skeletal remains, clothing and footwear of children were discovered during routine drain cleaning in the lane behind bungalow D-5. Overall, the remains of 17 bodies were found.
On December 29, Pandher and Koli were arrested. The arrests led to allegations of horrific crimes, including the killing and dismemberment of women and children. The police also alleged that some victims were raped.
The revelations triggered nationwide outrage, following which the government handed the investigation over to the CBI.
The parents of the victims, many of whom belonged to neighbouring slums, accused the police of ignoring complaints about children going missing for more than two years. Even after the arrests, more human remains and skulls were recovered from several locations in Nithari.
Convictions and Death Sentences
In all, Noida Police filed 19 FIRs against Pandher and Koli, while the CBI filed charge sheets in 16 cases.
Between 2009 and 2017, Koli was convicted by a special CBI court in 13 cases and sentenced to death. Pandher was convicted in two cases and also sentenced to death.
However, appeals by Koli and Pandher brought the investigation under scrutiny before the Allahabad High Court.
In October 2023, the High Court found serious flaws in the prosecution’s evidence. It described the investigation as botched and overturned the death sentences. Koli was acquitted in 12 cases, while Pandher was acquitted in both cases against him.
The High Court found that Koli’s confession, which formed a key basis of his conviction, was inadmissible. The court noted that the confession had been obtained after prolonged and unauthorised police custody without adequate legal safeguards.
The court also said the prosecution had failed to establish that the recovery of skulls and human remains from the open, public drain was made solely on the basis of Koli’s disclosure. It further found that the evidence against Pandher was insufficient.
Supreme Court Acquittal
While Pandher was acquitted in all the cases against him, Koli remained convicted in one case involving the alleged rape and murder of a teenage girl.
The CBI, the Uttar Pradesh government and the victims’ families challenged the acquittals before the Supreme Court. In June 2025, the Supreme Court upheld the acquittal of Koli and Pandher.
Koli, however, continued to face conviction in the final case, despite having been acquitted in 12 other cases based on the same evidence.
In November 2025, the Supreme Court exercised its curative jurisdiction and acquitted Koli in the final case as well. The court said that since the evidence used in the 12 other cases had been rejected, upholding his conviction in the remaining case would amount to a “manifest miscarriage of justice”.
While allowing Koli’s curative petition, the Supreme Court also observed that criminal law does not permit conviction based on conjecture or a hunch. It said suspicion, however grave, cannot substitute for proof beyond reasonable doubt and that the identity of the actual perpetrator had not been established to the required legal standard.
Koli walked out of Luksar District Jail in Greater Noida on November 12, 2025, after nearly two decades in custody. He later moved to Haridwar, where he was reportedly running a tea stall.
Victim’s Family Still Seeking Justice
Jhabbu Lal and his wife Sunita, 61, have spent nearly two decades seeking justice for their daughter. The couple, originally from Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district, had moved to Nithari around four decades ago in search of work. Lal earned his livelihood by ironing clothes for residents in the area.
“If the government helps us, only then will we be able to continue our fight in future. We can’t fight on our own,” Lal said.
The Nithari case, which began with reports of missing children and young women and the subsequent recovery of skeletal remains from around bungalow D-5, has gone through multiple investigations, convictions, death sentences and acquittals.
With Koli’s death now under investigation, the circumstances surrounding his death remain to be established, while the Nithari killings continue to leave questions for the victims’ families.
