Supreme Court Acquits Surendra Koli in Final Nithari Killings Case, Paving Way for Release

The Supreme Court has acquitted Surendra Koli in the last pending case related to the 2006 Nithari serial killings, ordering his immediate release. A three-judge bench allowed his curative petition, overturning a 2011 conviction for the rape and murder of a 15-year-old girl. The court cited investigative lapses and noted that allowing the conviction to stand on an evidentiary basis it had rejected in other Nithari cases would violate constitutional principles. Koli had previously been acquitted in 12 other related cases.