Noida, Sep 19 (PTI) Surendra Koli, the main accused in the Nithari killings who was acquitted in all 13 cases before his release from prison last year, behaved normally during his 14-month stay at Luksar Jail, its superintendent said on Saturday.
Koli stayed at the Greater Noida jail from September 2024 to November 11, 2025, when he was released following a Supreme Court order, Luksar Jail Superintendent Brajesh Singh told PTI.
“His behaviour was normal while he was in the jail. We did not find anything wrong in his behaviour,” Singh added.
Prior to this, Koli was lodged at the Dasna jail in adjoining Ghaziabad for most of his prison term. He was also briefly taken to a jail in Meerut but again brought back to Dasna and subsequently, to Luksar.
Koli, who was found hanging at a tea stall in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar on Friday, was at the centre of the sensational Nithari killings that came to light in 2006 after skeletal remains, skulls and bones of children and women were found near the bungalow of businessman Moninder Singh Pandher in Sector 31, Noida. Koli used to work as a domestic help at Pandher’s residence.
The circumstances leading up to Koli’s death have triggered questions from the family of one of the Nithari victims. Jhabbu Lal, whose 15-year-old daughter was among the victims, alleged that Koli was killed and questioned the suicide angle.
“Koli has been killed, he has not committed suicide. Had he committed suicide in jail, it could be understood that he was depressed. But after being released from jail and spending months outside, he commits suicide. This raises questions,” Lal said.
“He was probably about to disclose some important information and that is why he was killed,” he alleged.
Lal also claimed that it was not Koli but Pandher who was the main culprit in the Nithari killings. “He should be hanged,” he said, while appealing to the government for help in continuing the family’s legal fight.
Lal’s wife, Sunita Devi, echoed her husband and called for a probe into Koli’s death. “Surendra Koli was killed. He was running a tea shop and would have been earning money. He must have been murdered and it should be investigated,” she said.
The couple, who have spent nearly 20 years seeking justice for their daughter, had moved to Nithari from Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh around four decades ago in search of work.
Koli was arrested in 2006 after the skeletal remains were found in and around Pandher’s bungalow. He was subsequently convicted in several cases but was acquitted in all 13 Nithari-related cases, with the Supreme Court allowing his petition in the final pending case in November 2025.
Koli walked out of Luksar Jail on November 11, 2025, accompanied by his lawyers. He did not speak to the waiting journalists at the time and his destination was not disclosed. PTI COR KIS RC
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