Surendra Koli changed name to 'Sada Ram', worked at Haridwar tea stall before death

Surendra Kumar Koli, who was acquitted in the last remaining case linked to the Nithari killings, spent his final weeks in Haridwar under the name “Sada Ram”. He was found hanging inside a small tea stall in Bhupatwala on Friday.

Police said the death appeared prima facie to be suicide, while the post-mortem report is awaited. No suicide note was found at the spot.

Koli introduced himself as Sada Ram

Around 25 days before his death, Koli met 28-year-old Jai Kashyap at a friend’s house after seeking help in finding accommodation. He introduced himself as Sada Ram and said he was from Almora and was looking for both a room and work.

Kashyap helped him find a place in Roshanabad. Koli stayed there for a few days but left after the landlord asked for identity documents. Kashyap said Koli did not want to submit his Aadhaar card.

Kashyap later learnt that he had moved to Haridwar, where he was planning to run a tea stall.

“He told me he was going to start a tea shop as Dharmender bhai (Dharmender Kaushik, another acquaintance) had rented a shop there in his name and given it to Koli to run," he said.

The two did not remain in touch. “I helped him as a human being," Kashyap said.

Koli had never told him that he was facing any trouble. “But I could see that he was troubled by something," Kashyap said. “I did not know why."

It was only after his death that Kashyap learnt that Sada Ram was actually Koli.

“I came to know his name today," Kashyap said, according to an Indian Express report.

Koli changed jobs before opening tea stall

Police sources said Koli arrived in Haridwar around a month and a half before his death. He initially worked as a security guard at a factory but left the job. Kaushik later helped him secure another security job at an apartment through a firm, which Koli also left.

Around three days before his death, Koli rented a small tea stall opposite Lal Mata Temple in Bhupatwala in Kaushik’s name. He moved his belongings there from Roshanabad and began living at the stall.

He had reportedly been selling tea and biscuits there for only two or three days when Kaushik found him dead at around 10 am and alerted police.

Why was Koli acquitted in Nithari cases?

Koli had spent nearly two decades in jail, including time on death row, over the 2006 Nithari killings.

The Allahabad High Court acquitted him in 12 cases in October 2023, citing issues including unreliable evidence and procedural lapses. The Supreme Court upheld those acquittals in 2025 and later acquitted him in the final case using its curative jurisdiction.

The courts had questioned key parts of the prosecution case, including his 2007 confession and the recovery of human remains and belongings. Koli was released in November 2025.

Police await post-mortem report

Circle Officer, Haridwar City, Shishupal Singh Negi, said the case appeared, prima facie, to be a suicide.

Investigators are expected to examine the circumstances surrounding his death, including the absence of a suicide note, his use of an assumed name and his recent changes in employment and accommodation.