CBI begins Nithari investigation, visits Moninder's house

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, Jan 12 (UNI) After formally taking over the investigation in the Nithari serial killings, the CBI team today inspected the sector 31 'killer house' in Nithari village.

The 40-member CBI team, comprising officials of the 'Forensic Science Laboratory - Hyderabad' and led by DIG Arun Kumar, reached the accused Moninder Singh Pandher's 'killer house'.

While inspecting the house, the team also surveyed the lane situated behind it where skulls of victims were dumped.

The task of getting the 'nullah'--close to the house of accused, cleaned has also been initiated with municipal workers and excavators being mobilised for the job.

The 'nullah', avoided so far by the administration, reportedly still contains skeletal remains of the victims killed over the two-year period in Nithari allegedly by Moninder and his servant Surendra. ''The regular popping up of 'bones' was testimony to it,'' they contend.

CBI officials also went into the details gathered by the Noida police into the investigation so far.

Meanwhile, sources in the CBI assured of an in-depth investigation into the case to confirm that there were no missing links in the 'story' besides looking for a suspected involvement of some other influential people other then the accused.

It would also go into the alleged connivance of the Noida police officials to turn a blind eye to the criminal deeds of the accused for monetary considerations.

The CBI had yesterday taken accused Moninder Singh Pandher and Surendra Koli in its custody for 14 days (till January 25) for further questioning into the serial killings case after their arrival at New Delhi from Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

It had also met the Special Investigation Team (SIT), constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government, to gather relevant information on the case.

The CBI team had also taken into its possession the 19 FIRs -- 17 of those who have been identified and two others -- filed in connection with the killing of children in sector 31 Nithari village here over a period of two years.

In another development, the Allahabad High Court had yesterday refused to grant relief to both the accused on the FIR lodged against them at Noida sector 20 police station, seeking its quashing and directing the police not to take 'coercive measures' against them.

The CBI stepped into the case after the Centre received a notification from the Uttar Pradesh Government on January 10 requesting it to hand over the probe into Nithari killings and Kavita murder case to the Central investigation agency.

UNI