18 Incidents in 15 Months: Police Shootings Spike Across Gujarat as Officers Fire to Injure or Kill

The death of a rape-and-murder accused in police firing in Anand district has brought Gujarat’s increasing reliance on firearms under intense scrutiny, with official figures revealing that state police opened fire in 18 separate incidents between May 2025 and July 2026. While two encounters resulted in the deaths of suspects, 16 other cases ended with accused individuals sustaining gunshot injuries—predominantly aimed below the knee—as law enforcement personnel routinely cited self-defence, weapon snatching, or escape attempts.

The sharp uptick in tactical firing has sparked a wider conversation across legal and human rights circles in Gujarat regarding police procedures during crime scene reconstructions and high-risk arrests.

Fatal Shootings in Anand and Gandhinagar

The latest incident involved Suresh Parmar, accused of the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl in Anand. According to police statements, Parmar allegedly pulled a knife and attacked accompanying officers while being taken to a site for investigation, forcing police to open fire in retaliation.

Parmar’s death follows a similar encounter on 24 September 2025 in Gandhinagar, where another murder and rape suspect, Vipul Parmar, was killed. Investigators claimed he snatched a service revolver and fired at cops during a crime scene reconstruction, leading officers to shoot him dead on the spot.

Common Operational Patterns

Data shows a concentrated cluster of shootings in December 2025 alone, when Gujarat Police logged six separate firing incidents in a single month. The cases spanned a broad range of offences, from grave crimes like rape and murder to bootlegging and prohibition-related enforcement.

Across these cases, official explanations presented by police departments followed a consistent narrative:

• Trigger Events: Suspects allegedly attacking officers with sharp weapons, attempting to snatch service arms, or trying to flee custody.
• Operational Stages: Shootings occurred primarily during weapon recoveries, crime scene reconstructions, or initial arrest raids.
• Targeted Firing: Outside the two fatal encounters, 16 incidents involved police shooting suspects in the legs to disable them.
• Specialised Units: Three incidents involved the State Monitoring Cell (SMC), while two arose from crowd-control measures rather than targeted criminal probes.

Self-Defence Claims Face Public Scrutiny

Police brass maintain that officers deployed firearms strictly as a last resort when faced with imminent physical threats. Senior officials highlighted that severe attacks on police personnel during scene visits leave investigating teams with little time to react, making quick neutralization necessary to prevent escapes or casualties among officers.

However, legal experts and civil rights groups point to the uniform nature of the official explanations across districts, raising questions over standard operating procedures during custody transport and site visits. With 18 incidents recorded over 15 months, accountability measures surrounding custodial handling and the use of force remain firmly under the spotlight.