Surat Firing Case | Heard ‘firecracker’ noise, woman forest officer’s son tells police

Sonalben was allegedly shot in the forehead while driving her son to school, police said.

November 11, 2025 08:42 AM IST

4 min read

Police are searching for the accused, Nikunj Goswami, husband of the victim and an RTO inspector at the Surat RTO office.

The only witness in the case of firing on Surat Range Forest Officer (RFO) Sonalben Solanki – her four-year-old son – told the police that he heard a loud noise – similar to that of a “firecracker” – and later his mother lost control of the steering, causing her car to collide with a roadside tree on Thursday.

Sonalben was allegedly shot in the forehead while driving her son to school, police said. She is under treatment at a hospital, where doctors said on Monday that her condition remains critical.
Police are yet to trace the woman’s husband, Nikunj Goswami, an inspector at the Regional Transport Office, who is suspected to have played a role in the firing incident.

Doctors at the PP Sawani Hospital said Sonalben is yet to regain consciousness.

Sonalben’s son is now staying at his grandparents’ house at their village in Kamrej taluka.
On Monday, a team of the Surat rural police, along with the teachers of the minor and her family members, reached the village. The police spoke to the minor in the presence of his family members to find out what happened on the day of the incident.

Surat Rural Deputy Superintendent of Police R R Sarvaiya said, “We took the boy to a safer environment and talked to him. He told us that he was seated on the front passenger seat of the car and playing. He heard a sound – similar to that of a firecracker – and soon the car hit a tree on the roadside. He, along with his mother, were injured after their heads hit the dashboard of the car. The minor could not remember more details.”

He added, “We suspect that somebody – the suspected shooter – may have signalled the car driven by Sonalben Solanki. There was fog, so she may not have immediately recognised the person while driving. She may have stopped the car and talked to the person after lowering the window glass. Later, the person fired one round from a pistol.”

Police are searching for the accused, Nikunj Goswami, husband of the victim and an RTO inspector at the Surat RTO office. Multiple teams have been formed and are deployed in different areas to locate and apprehend him. “Our teams will nab him soon and later, more details of the case are likely to be revealed,” added Sarvaiya.

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Police sources said that on the morning of November 6, Sonalben left her house in the morning around 8:15 am with her son to drop him off at school, in her Honda Amaze car. After travelling nearly three kilometres, her car collided with a roadside tree. After learning about the accident, her brother Hardik reached the spot and took his sister to hospital in Kamrej and later to P P Sawani Hospital in Surat city. The doctors performed surgery and removed a bullet from her head.

Sources close to the family said that Sonal married Nikunj in 2020. For the past year, Sonal has been separated from her husband and has been staying with her parents at Jokha village, due to her husband’s alleged affair with another woman and frequent quarrels.

In January this year, Sonal Solanki, who was staying at her parents’ house after differences with her husband, received information that her husband was in an apartment in Surat city. Sonal informed the Umra police and reached the flat, where she allegedly saw her husband with a woman. She then took Nikunj Solanki and the woman to the Umra police station. However, the matter was later resolved and no police complaint was filed, said police sources.

At present, two cases are ongoing between the couple in Surat district court, the sources said.

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