A residents’ body in Noida on Monday said it will move the Supreme Court against the Allahabad High Court’s recent order acquitting domestic help Surendra Koli and his employer Moninder Singh Pandher in the 2006 Nithari serial killings.

The District Development Residents Welfare Association (DDRWA) is consulting legal experts and has met the victim families to take the case further.

“We first thought of extending financial assistance to the victim families but after discussions, it was decided that we will take up the case and bear the legal expenses of the case in the Supreme Court,” DDRWA president N P Singh told news agency PTI.

“We have taken the consent of the victim families, and are consulting lawyers who are studying the high court’s order. They will guide us on the way ahead in this case. We are hoping to move the Supreme Court within a week,” Mr Singh added.

Ashok, who had lost his five-year-old son in the Nithari serial killings, said he has spoken to the residents’ body about the case.

“I have given them my go head for taking up this case in the top court. Let’s see what happens next,” Ashok, who runs a footwear shop, told PTI.

Businessman Moninder Singh Pandher, 65, who was arrested in the sensational case, walked out of Luksar jail in Greater Noida on Friday.

The Allahabad High Court on October 16 acquitted him and his domestic help Koli in the case after noting that the prosecution had failed to prove guilt “beyond reasonable doubt” and that the investigation was botched up.

The two were charged with rape and murder and sentenced to death by a lower court in the killings in Nithari, Noida, that horrified the nation with the details of sexual assault, brutal murder and hints of possible cannibalism.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai wrote to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday requesting the appointment of officers who are sensitive to the issue of air pollution after several department heads skipped a meeting to review pollution mitigation measures in the national capital.

Gopal Rai said a meeting of the National Capital Civil Service Authority (NCCSA) should be convened as soon as possible to address the issue. The NCCSA takes a call on service matters, including transfers, postings and disciplinary action.

After the meeting with departments concerned earlier in the day, Gopal Rai expressed regret that several department heads did not attend the meeting and other senior officials appeared to be unaware of the deteriorating air quality and the measures their departments are taking to combat pollution.

He urged the chief secretary to ensure that these officials work diligently for the next month when air pollution is expected to peak.

In his letter to Arvind Kejriwal, Gopal Rai said, “A K Singh, Principal Secretary of the Environment Department; Ashwani Kumar, DPCC Chairman and Principal Secretary of the Revenue Department; and Ashish Kundra, Transport Commissioner, did not attend the important meeting today. Their absence makes it extremely difficult to make any significant decisions and ensure their implementation.” 

“Therefore, I request that, in order to effectively address the serious pollution situation, a meeting of the National Capital Civil Service Authority should be convened as soon as possible, and officers who are sensitive to the issue of pollution and can actively work to reduce pollution should be appointed,” he concluded.

Israel bombarded Gaza with air strikes early today killing at least 70 people, Hamas officials said as the military said it had struck some 320 targets in the Palestinian enclave in 24 hours.

The Israeli military said Monday it had hit “over 320 military targets in the Gaza Strip” over the past 24 hours.

“The terror targets struck included tunnels containing Hamas terrorists, dozens of operational command centres… and Islamic Jihad terrorists, military compounds, and observation posts,” the army said in a statement.

Israel’s attacks concentrated on the Gaza Strip’s centre and north, Palestinian media reported. A strike on a house near the Jabalia refugee camp, in northern Gaza, killed several Palestinians and wounded others, according to media reports.

Health authorities in Gaza said at least 4,600 people were killed in Israel’s two-week bombardment that began after a Hamas Oct. 7 rampage on southern Israeli communities in which 1,400 people were killed and 212 were taken into Gaza as hostages.

Here are the live updates on the Israel-Hamas war: