On Tuesday, the Supreme Court cleared Nithari killings convict Surendra Koli in the only case where his conviction and life sentence were still in effect. The court reasoned that the 2011 verdict could not be upheld because Koli had already been cleared in 12 other related cases involving the same facts and evidence.
It would be unusual and unfair, according to a bench of Chief Justice of India Bhushan R. Gavai, justices Surya Kant, and Vikram Nath, to uphold Koli's conviction in a single instance after the Supreme Court itself had overturned his conviction in every other case based on the same evidence.
If the petitioner is not needed in any other situation, they should be freed immediately.

Jutstice Nath delivered the bench's verdict, saying, "The jail superintendent is to be informed of this judgement immediately."
Before delaying its decision on Koli's curative petition, his final legal option, the court had stated on October 7 that this outcome would be a "travesty of justice." Advocate Payoshi Roy and senior attorney Yug Mohit Chaudhary represented Koli in court.
The bench granted the petition on Tuesday, noting that Koli's alleged confession and the finding of a kitchen knife in a lane behind his house were the only factors that led to his acquittal in the other twelve instances.

In one of the most unsettling criminal cases to ever reach the nation's criminal justice system, the ruling ends almost twenty years of litigation. Additionally, it is a rare example of the Supreme Court using its exceptional curative competence to reverse an earlier ruling. A curative petition, which is usually heard in chambers, is only taken into consideration in extraordinary situations, such as when a fair hearing is denied, when there is judicial bias, or when there is blatant abuse of the court system that causes serious injustice.
The bench had reminded Additional Solicitor General Raja Thakare, who was representing the CBI, of the State's obligation to fairly assist the court during the October hearing.

When Thakare attempted to differentiate the ongoing case based on factual subtleties, the CJI had said, "As a solicitor, we expect you to be an officer of the court."
In July, the Supreme Court upheld Koli's acquittal in 12 of the 13 cases connected to the Nithari murders, noting serious procedural errors, improper recoveries that were not backed by a legitimate disclosure declaration under Section 27 of the Evidence Act, and untrustworthy evidence. At that time, the CBI's challenges against the 2023 rulings of the Allahabad High Court were rejected.
The only case in which Koli's conviction and death sentence had been upheld by the Supreme Court in 2011 was the subject of his curative plea.

Due to an excessive delay in processing his mercy appeal, the Allahabad High Court commuted that sentence to life in prison in 2015. Even this final conviction is now nullified by Tuesday's ruling.
When the skeleton remains of multiple children were found in the drain behind businessman Moninder Singh Pandher's Noida home, where Koli was employed as a domestic assistant, the Nithari killings came to light in 2007, shocking the nation. Following widespread indignation over the discoveries, Koli and Pandher were taken into custody.
After taking over the investigation, the CBI claimed that Koli had sexually assaulted, murdered, and lured girls into the residence. They even accused him of cannibalism. 16 rape and murder cases were filed between 2005 and 2007; trial judges found Koli guilty in 13 of these and Pandher in two.

Higher courts eventually reversed these convictions. In October 2023, the Allahabad High Court cleared Koli in twelve cases, casting doubt on the probe and perhaps presenting the prospect of an untapped organ trade angle. On July 30, the Supreme Court concluded that the prosecution had not proven guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and dismissed the CBI's appeals.
The top court noted that the discovery of firearms and other materials during the investigation was not backed by a legitimate statement under Section 27 of the Evidence Act, which controls the admissibility of such evidence, even though it cleared him.
After the Supreme Court upheld Koli's conviction in one of the instances, he was given a death sentence in February 2011.