2006 Nithari serial killings: Koli, Pandher get death sentence for murder of Pinki Sarkar

A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court at Ghaziabad gave death sentence to Surinder Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher on Monday in connection with one of the 16 cases of rape, murder, abduction and criminal conspiracy in Nithari, Noida. CBI Special Judge (anti corruption) Pawan Kumar Tiwari, who pronounced the sentence called it a 'rarest of rare' case.

"There is no scope for their (the accused's) reform or rehabilitation. This case falls under the category of rarest of rare and both deserve death penalty," the CBI special judge said.

On Saturday, the CBI court held both the accused guilty of attempted rape, murder and destruction of evidence. Out of the 16 cases, eight have been decided so far and the Ghaziabad court has awarded prime accused Surinder Kohli death penalty in each case.

Arrested in December 2006, Pandher walked out of Dasna jail in Ghaziabad in September 2014 after getting bail in all cases. Koli is still in the same prison. After being held guilty in this case, Pandher was again taken into custody and sent to Dasna jail.

Saturday's verdict was in the eighth case out of the 19 killings. It is the second case, so far, in which both Pandher and Koli have been named as



accused.

In the first case, a CBI court in Ghaziabad gave both the accused death penalty in February 2009. But after an appeal, the Allahabad High Court acquitted Pandher and upheld Koli's punishment.

CBI Special Judge (anti corruption) Pawan Tiwari, on Saturday, held Koli guilty of murder, abduction, attempted rape and destruction of evidence in the eighth case. The victim was 20-year-old Pinki Sarkar who worked as a domestic help in Noida Sector 30. She had left the house of her employer after watching a television serial on October 5, 2006. She disappeared and could not be traced.

After the bones, skulls and other items of the Nithari victims were discovered from the backyard of the house belonging to Pandher, the Noida police arrested him and Koli on December 29, 2006 after a nationwide uproar over the horrific killings.

The Nithari killings took place in 2005 and 2006 when minor girls, young women and children disappeared mysteriously from around Pandher's Sector 31 residence in Noida.

The CBI said Koli, who is from Mangrukhal in Uttarakhand, lured victims to his employer's house where he attempted rape and later dismembered their body parts, which were later packed in bags and thrown in the backyard.