The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the death sentence of Surinder Koli, prime accused in Nithari serial killings, who argued co-accused Moninder Singh Pandher as owner of the house had "more responsibility for the actions of his servants" but was acquitted.
Koli submitted that when Pandher, who as master of the house, where the macabre rape and serial killings had taken place, had a more vicarious liability but was acquitted, he too was entitled to acquittal.
He also claimed the entire conviction was based on circumstantial evidence.
"Because, the Hon'ble High Court erred in not appreciating the fact that the position of the petitioner (Koli) was better than the acquitted co accused person (Pandher).
"The house where the crime was committed as per prosecution was the house of co-accused and house owner is having more responsibility for his servants. In these circumstances, the benefit of doubt ought to have been given to present petitioner also," Koli, in his appeal filed through counsel Sushil Balwada, said.
Koli was sentenced to death, along with Pandher, by the Sessions court in Ghaziabad on February 13, 2009, but the Allahabad High Court acquitted the latter while confirming the death sentence on the servant in connection with the grisly killings, which surfaced in December 2006.
Koli submitted it was for Pandher as owner of the house to explain the recovery of skeletal remains from the house.
"Because the Hon'ble High Court failed to appreciate that it is not petitioner who is owner of the house and it was not for the petitioner to offer an explanation about dead bodies, rather co-accused person was to offer explanation being owner of the house," the appeal said.
The petition contended there was no direct evidence and confessional statements made before police being inadmissible in evidence, the conviction was not sustainable. Koli has also claimed the Nithari killings did not fall under the category of "rarest or rare" cases that warranted a death penalty.
According to Koli, his conviction was not based on any material evidence but rather on circumstantial evidence as the prosecution failed to establish his guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
The house of Moninder Singh Pandher in Section 20 Noida was the scene of the horrific rape and killings of girls and women nearly three years ago that had sparked a national outrage.
Koli was convicted and sentenced to death by a special CBI court on February 13, 2009 for the rape and murder of 14-year-old Rimpa Haldar, one of the several victims of the grisly killings in Nithari in 2007.
The death sentence was imposed on Koli in only one of the case relating to the rape and murder of Rimpa as the other rape-cum-murder cases are still at the trial stage.
A bench of Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justice B S Chauhan, while staying the death sentence, sought a response from the CBI and the Uttar Pradesh government on Koli's appeal.
Along with Koli, the Sessions court also sentenced to death his employer Pandher.
The Allahabad High Court, however, while acquitting Pandher of the charges, confirmed the death sentence of Koli on September 11, 2009.
Aggrieved by the High Court's judgment, Koli filed the appeal against the death sentence.
