Gujarat Forest Officer Murders Family Over Living Arrangement Dispute: A Premeditated Triple Homicide

A Gujarat forest officer has been arrested for the horrific murder of his wife and two children, whom he smothered with a pillow before disposing of their bodies in a pit near his official residence.

In Bhavnagar, what initially appeared as a mysterious disappearance has been revealed as a premeditated triple homicide committed by Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) Shailesh Khambhla, age 39.

Police investigations uncovered that Khambhla murdered his 42-year-old wife Nayana, 13-year-old daughter, and 9-year-old son, subsequently burying them in a six-foot deep pit he had prepared beforehand near his Forest Colony home on Talaja Road.

Authorities became suspicious due to Khambhla's apparent lack of concern about his "missing" family members and inconsistencies in his statements during questioning.

Superintendent of Police Nitesh Pandey revealed that the victims, who normally resided in Surat with Khambhla's parents, had come to Bhavnagar in early November for Diwali vacation.

On November 5, Khambhla reported to police that his wife had left with their children while he was on duty. He claimed a security guard had witnessed them departing in an auto rickshaw—an assertion the guard later contradicted during police questioning.

Investigators discovered that Khambhla had instructed his subordinate, Range Forest Officer Girish Vania, to dig two pits behind his residence, allegedly to dispose of garbage. The excavation occurred on November 2, and on November 6, Khambhla requested a dumper truck to fill the trenches, claiming a nilgai had fallen into one of them.

Police recovered the three bodies on November 16 after excavating the site with forensic experts present.

Following his confession, Khambhla was charged with murder and attempting to destroy evidence. According to SP Pandey, "It was a pre-planned murder as he first dug pits by misguiding his staff and then killed his wife and two children by smothering them using a pillow."

The motive appears to be a longstanding marital dispute. Khambhla told investigators that his wife had been insisting they live together in Bhavnagar rather than with his parents in Surat, a demand he consistently refused.

"Frequent quarrels over this issue eventually ended up in the murder," Pandey concluded.