Archive · 18 Sep 2026
Surinder Koli, Once Called Nithari’s ‘Butcher,’ Dies in Haridwar
Surinder Koli was a domestic worker who became famous because of the Nithari killings case.
The case began after children and young women disappeared near Nithari village in Noida.
Human remains were later found in a drain near the house where Koli worked.
Koli and businessman Moninder Singh Pandher were arrested.
Koli was convicted in several cases and was sentenced to death.
After many years in court, he was acquitted in all the Nithari cases against him.
The courts said there was not enough reliable evidence to prove the charges.
On September 18, Koli was found hanging inside a tea stall in Haridwar.
Officials said there was no suicide note and were investigating his death.
Surinder Koli, a former domestic worker, was the principal accused in the Nithari killings investigation.
The case emerged in 2006 after human remains were found near Moninder Singh Pandher’s Noida home.
Koli was convicted and sentenced to death in several cases involving the disappearance, rape and killing of children and young women.
The Allahabad High Court acquitted Koli in 12 cases in October 2023, citing a lack of credible evidence.
Koli was found hanging at a tea stall in Haridwar on September 18; no suicide note was found and an investigation was underway.
- Who
- Surinder Koli, a former domestic worker and principal accused in the Nithari killings case, was found dead.
- What
- Koli was found hanging inside a tea stall after years of convictions, death sentences and eventual acquittals in the Nithari cases.
- When
- He was found dead on September 18. The article reports that the Supreme Court dismissed challenges to his acquittal in November 2025.
- Where
- Haridwar, Uttarakhand; the Nithari case concerned Noida’s Sector 31 and Nithari village.
- Why
- The circumstances of Koli’s death were under investigation; no suicide note had been recovered.
Prosecution and Earlier Convictions
Acquittal and Court Findings
Evidence and responsibility
Prosecution and Earlier Convictions
Investigators accused Koli of kidnapping, raping and killing children and young women, and Koli was convicted and sentenced to death in several cases.
Acquittal and Court Findings
The Allahabad High Court acquitted Koli in 12 cases for lack of credible evidence, and the Supreme Court later upheld the acquittals, stating that grave suspicion cannot replace proof beyond reasonable doubt.
Role of Moninder Singh Pandher
Prosecution and Earlier Convictions
Pandher’s bungalow was the location near which human remains were recovered, and he was arrested and charged alongside Koli.
Acquittal and Court Findings
Pandher was also acquitted by the Allahabad High Court in two cases, with the acquittals later surviving challenges before the Supreme Court.
- Name
- Surinder Koli
- Nickname
- The ‘Butcher of Nithari’
- Occupation
- Domestic worker; reportedly later a tea vendor in Haridwar
- Nithari case discovery
- Sixteen human skulls, bones and clothing were recovered from a drain near Pandher’s bungalow in 2006.
- Earlier punishment
- Koli received death sentences in several cases and had one death sentence commuted to life imprisonment in January 2015.
- Acquittals
- The Allahabad High Court acquitted Koli in 12 cases in October 2023; the Supreme Court later dismissed challenges to the acquittals.
- Death investigation
- His body was found hanging from a rope, and officials said no suicide note had been recovered.