Families of Nithari victims hold prayer meet in Noida

On the fourth anniversary of the Nithari serial killings expose, the families of the victims today organised a prayer meet in memory of the deceased.Ram Kishen, father of three-year-old Harsh, Jhabbu Lal, father of 13-year-old Jyoti, and Durga Prasad, father of 10-year-old Aarti, were among those who participated in the 'havan' ceremony.On December 29, 2006 Noida police had arrested businessman Moninder Singh Pandher and his servant Surinder Koli in connection with the killing.Seventeen skulls were recovered from a dry drain behind Pandher's house.A total of 19 cases were filed in connection with the rape and murder of children and a young woman whose skeletal remains, clothes and footwear were found in Nithari in 2006. The CBI had filed chargesheets in 16 cases and three cases were closed due to lack of evidence.The rapes and murders in Nithari had sent shock waves across the nation.Koli was sentenced to death by CBI in four cases. Koli was given capital punishment in February 2009 for the rape and murder of 14-year-old Rimpa Haldar, in September 2009 for rape and murder of 8-year-old Aarti and in May this year on the same charges in the case relating to teenager Rachna. Koli was also sentenced to death for the rape and murder of 12-year-old Deepali on December 22.While Pandher and Koli were both initially held as accused in the Deepali case, the CBI named Koli as the prime accused in the charge sheet, stating there was lack of evidence against Pandher.