Gurugram, June 8 : Four persons including an advocate have been arrested here for allegedly plotting the murder of a woman who was shot at while she was riding her scooter on the Dwarka Expressway, the police said on Saturday.

According to the police, following the instructions of the advocate, two motorcycle-borne assailants on Friday night shot the woman in her back from close range, leaving her critically injured.

The woman, identified as Pallavi Sharma, was admitted to the ICU of a private hospital in the incident. She used to reside in Riddhi-Siddhi Apartment in Gurugram along with her children and ran a beauty parlour.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Nitish Bhardwaj (advocate); Gulshan Thakur of Bihar, Raja of Madhya Pradesh, and Banty of Nuh.

During questioning, Nitish Bhardwaj told the police that Pallavi Sharma had approached him regarding a case as she was living separately from her husband. Gradually, a friendship developed between the two.

"Bhardwaj wanted to get rid of Pallavi. Hence, he hatched a plan to eliminate her. As per the plan, he met Gulshan who prepared Raja and Banty for killing the woman and opened fire at the woman from close range with a motive to kill her on Friday night," Sandeep Kumar, a spokesperson of Gurugram Police, said.

In connection with the matter, Pallavi's father, Raj Kumar Sharma, in his police complaint said his daughter was on her way to some work at around 9.30 p.m. on Friday when two unidentified motorcycle-borne assailants shot at her from close range.

Some cab drivers who were present on the road took the injured woman to the hospital and informed the police.

Thereafter, the police visited the spot along with a forensic expert to collect evidence.

Sandeep Kumar said the woman is currently undergoing treatment and the police are probing the matter from all possible angles.

"Pallavi's father denied having any idea about his daughter's enmity with anyone," he added.

/IANS