Nithari Killings were heinous; matter of deep regret that identity of actual perpetrator not established: SC

The Supreme Court on Tuesday acquitted Surendra Koli, the domestic help convicted in the infamous Nithari serial killings, allowing his curative petition and setting aside his 2011 conviction for rape and murder.

While doing so, a CJI Gavai led bench has said that it is a matter of deep regret that despite prolonged investigation, the identity of the actual perpetrator has not been established in a manner that meets the legal standards.

"Criminal law does not permit conviction on conjecture or on a hunch. Suspicion, however grave, cannot replace proof beyond reasonable doubt. Courts cannot prefer expediency over legality. The presumption of innocence endures until guilt is proved through admissible and reliable evidence, and when the proof fails the only lawful outcome is to set aside the conviction even in a case involving horrific crimes.", the bench has said.

Court further observed that in the present case It was genuinely unfortunate that in the present matter negligence and delay corroded the fact-finding process and foreclosed avenues that might have identified the true offender. 

"The scene was not secured before excavation began, the alleged disclosure was not contemporaneously recorded, the remand papers carried contradictory versions, and the petitioner was kept in prolonged police custody without a timely, court-directed medical examination. Crucial scientific opportunities were lost when post-mortem material and other forensic outputs were not promptly and properly brought on record...The investigation did not adequately examine obvious witnesses from the household and neighbourhood and did not pursue material leads, including the organ-trade angle flagged by a governmental committee. Each lapse weakened the provenance and reliability of the evidence and narrowed the path to the truth", the bench also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Vikram Nath has noted.

The bench of Chief Justice BR Gavai, Justice Surya Kant, and Justice Vikram Nath delivered the verdict in open court, holding that Koli’s conviction and death sentence suffered from grave errors. The Court has directed that Koli be released forthwith, unless required in connection with any other pending case.

Koli, who faced trial in 13 separate cases related to the 2005–2007 Nithari serial murders, had earlier been acquitted in 12 of them. This curative petition pertained to the lone remaining conviction under Sections 302 (murder), 304 (culpable homicide), 376 (rape), and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.

Koli was sentenced to death in multiple cases, had been acquitted in 12 of them by the Allahabad High Court, which found the prosecution evidence unreliable. His curative plea sought to overturn the Supreme Court’s earlier decision upholding his conviction in one case, arguing that the same set of evidence was found insufficient in all others.

The Nithari killings, which came to light in Noida between 2005 and 2007, shocked the nation after skeletal remains of children and women were discovered near the house of businessman Moninder Singh Pandher, who was also accused in the case.

On July 30, 2025, the Court had upheld the acquittal of Surendra Koli in the 2006 Nithari serial killings case, dismissing 14 appeals filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Uttar Pradesh government. The Court had found "no perversity" in the Allahabad High Court’s 2023 judgment which had overturned Koli’s conviction. The 3-Judge Bench had held that the prosecution failed to legally establish crucial links in the chain of circumstantial evidence. It had noted that there was non-compliance with Section 27 of the Indian Evidence Act, which governs the admissibility of statements leading to the discovery of evidence. Referring specifically to the recovery of human skulls and victims' belongings from an open drain near the residence of Koli’s employer, businessman Moninder Singh Pandher, the Court had noted that the police had failed to properly record any voluntary statement from the accused that led to the discovery.

Case Title: Surendra Koli v. State of Uttar Pradesh

Pronouncement Date: November 11, 2025

Bench: CJI BR Gavai, Justices Surya Kant and Vikram Nath