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6d ago

Supreme Court Upholds Acquittals in Nithari Killings, Dismisses 14 Appeals

It held that recoveries of skulls and victim belongings were inadmissible without custodial statements required by Section 27 of the Evidence Act.

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The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the acquittal of Surendra Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher in 12 cases of murder linked to the Nithari killings. (Representative photo)
Nithari case: Surinder Koli (R) and Moninder Pandher (L) | Twitter @alokkumar6994

Overview

  • A bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai ruled there was no perversity in the Allahabad High Court’s 2023 decision to acquit Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli.
  • Justices highlighted procedural lapses in recording confessional statements and reaffirmed that recoveries without statements recorded under Section 27 of the Evidence Act are inadmissible.
  • Fourteen appeals filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Uttar Pradesh government and victims’ families were dismissed for lacking legal merit.
  • Pandher was acquitted in all cases linked to the 2005–06 Nithari murders while Koli remains imprisoned on a separate life term upheld by the Supreme Court in 2011.
  • The decision underscores the difficulty of securing convictions in cases built on circumstantial evidence and spotlights criticisms of investigative mishandling by police and the CBI.