Greater Noida

“There was an argument, after which more people joined the group, and Abhishek was allegedly beaten up,” said Shrivastava. He added that all the five victims, including a 14-year-old boy, had been present at the eatery at the time of the incident.

Police said Abhishek — they only gave his first name — hatched a plan to take revenge, roped in his nephew and a friend, Manish Singh, who helped him procure a countrymade pistol.

“Abhishek and his nephew would follow the targets for a few days as part of the recce, and whenever their victims were in desolate places, he would shoot them while the nephew would be riding pillion. In one incident, Manish had accompanied Abhishek instead of the boy,” said Shrivastava.

Manish has also been arrested while his nephew, a minor, has been detained at juvenile home.

Police officers believe the intention behind the shootings was only to injure, and not to kill. “All the victims received non-fatal injuries. It seems like he only wanted to injure them in order to exact revenge,” Shrivastava said. Investigations would be carried out to corroborate Abhishek’s statements, he said.

Abhishek, a resident of Chithera village, runs a small hardware shop. Manish is a resident of Shahpur village and works as a security guard. They do not have any previous criminal history, said police. Senior superintendent of police Ajay Pal Sharma said Abhishek and Manish would be prosecuted under the Gangster Act.