An Indian court on Friday sentenced a businessman and his servant to death for the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl that police say was part of gruesome serial killings near the capital.

A judge said that Moninder Singh Pandher and his servant, Surender Koli, will be hanged, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) spokesman said.

"The case was strong and we had evidence," he said.

The businessman and his servant were arrested in December 2006 after the body parts of 19 children and young women were found packed in 57 plastic bags and buried in the backyard and drains around Pandher's home near New Delhi.

Koli admitted in court that he even ate body parts of 14-year-old Rimpa Haldar, the first victim in the serial killing case for which the duo were sentenced, the CBI said.

Pandher earlier told the CBI he was oblivious to serial killings going on inside his home, saying he had mobile phone records showing he was usually out on business when the killings happened.

But a special CBI court then extended Pandher's charges to include the rape and murder of the 14-year-old.

Family members of the victims said they were elated at the verdict.

"I am very happy that both of them have been sentenced to death," Anil Haldar, father of Rimpa, told reporters. "This will protect the kids of the poor and also the rich."

While Pandher was charged with the killing of one girl, the CBI has filed charges against Koli in 16 of the 19 murders.