Nithari killings case: SC acquits Surendra Koli, allows his curative petition
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Tuesday acquitted Surendra Koli in one of the Nithari murder cases by allowing his curative petition challenging conviction, paving the way for his release.
Koli was earlier acquitted in other Nithari killing cases.
The Nithari killings came to light with the discovery of skeletal remains of eight children from a drain behind businessman Moninder Singh's Pandher's house at Nithari in Noida on December 29, 2006. Koli was the domestic help at Pandher's house at that time.
The order was passed by a bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices Surya Kant and Vikram Nath, which had heard Koli's petition in the open court.
"For the reasons recorded above, the curative petition is allowed," Justice Nath said while pronouncing the order.
The top court acquitted Koli in the case and quashed the sentence and fine imposed upon him earlier.
"The petitioner shall be released forthwith, if not required in any other case or proceeding," the bench said.
Koli was convicted for the rape and murder of a 15-year-old girl in Noida's Nithari village, and his conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court in February 2011.
His review plea was dismissed in 2014.
However, in January 2015, the Allahabad High Court commuted his death sentence to life imprisonment due to an inordinate delay in the decision on his mercy petition.
In October 2023, the Allahabad High Court acquitted Koli and co-accused Pandher in several other Nithari cases, overturning the death sentences awarded by the trial court in 2017.
The court acquitted Koli in 12 cases and Pandher in two.
The CBI and the victims' families later challenged these acquittals before the Supreme Court, but the top court dismissed all 14 appeals on July 30 this year.
On October 7, the top court reserved its verdict on Koli's curative petition, observing that his plea "deserves to be allowed”.
Observing that an "anomalous situation" had arisen following Koli's acquittal in all other related cases, the apex court had remarked that the petition "deserves to be allowed".
The bench had noted that the conviction in the case was largely based on a statement and the recovery of a kitchen knife, raising questions about the sufficiency of evidence.
The CBI had taken over the case and its search resulted in the recovery of more human remains.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengal MLA Humayun Kabir floats new party days after laying foundation for Babri-style mosque
Beldanga (WB), Dec 22 (PTI): West Bengal MLA Humayun Kabir on Monday floated a new outfit, Janata Unnayan Party, days after he was suspended by the TMC for laying the foundation stone for a Babri-style mosque in Murshidabad district.
Addressing a public meeting in Beladanga, Kabir named eight candidates that his new party will field in the 2026 assembly elections in the state.
Kabir, the MLA of Bharatpur, said he would contest the assembly polls from two seats, Rejinagar and Beldanga in Murshidabad.
"We can only tell you later how many seats we will be finally contesting," he told the gathering.
Kabir said his mission is to oust Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from power in the assembly polls, which will be due in less than six months.
ALSO READ: Elephant calf brought from Bijnor kept under care at Pilibhit Tiger Reserve
"Mamata Banerjee is no longer the same person I knew. She is beyond the reach of the common man," he alleged.
The BJP alleged Kabir was working to help the TMC return to power.
"Kabir will not be a factor in the next assembly polls. He will face the drubbing of the electorate along with his old friend TMC, with which he is still in touch in a clandestine manner. Both Kabir and his new party will be rejected by the people of Bengal," state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya claimed.
He claimed Kabir was attempting to split "BJP votes" in the assembly polls.
"In the wake of the situation in Bangladesh, people of Bengal will thwart Kabir's attempts and elect a strong nationalist force like the BJP, only which can defeat fundamentalists," he claimed.
ALSO READ: Uttar Pradesh: Elderly man stands up after posing in wheelchair with BJP MLA, video goes viral
The TMC is yet to comment on Kabir's new party.
The TMC had suspended Kabir on December 4 after his announcement to build a Babri-style mosque triggered a massive row.
On December 6, the day the Babri Masjid was razed in Ayodhya in 1992, a defiant Kabir laid the foundation stone for the mosque at Rejinagar.
Kabir has had a tryst with most of the major political parties in the state over the last 10 years.
In 2015, he was "expelled" by the TMC for six years for criticising the CM and alleging that she was trying to make her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, the "king".
He contested the 2016 assembly elections as an Independent from the Rejinagar seat, but lost to Congress candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury. He subsequently joined the Congress, which then had a huge presence in the district, but switched to the BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP fielded him as its candidate in the Murshidabad Lok Sabha seat, and managed to secure the third spot after the TMC and Congress nominees. He then returned to the TMC and, in 2021, became the MLA of Bharatpur.
