Ghaziabad, May 23 (IANS): One man was in critical condition on Wednesday after a restaurant owner opened fire at four customers who objected to an inflated dinner bill, police said.

The incident occurred on Tuesday night at Tyagi Restaurant on Meerut road.

The police said at about 11 p.m., the four customers went to have dinner at the eatery but were stunned to see the amount they were asked to cough up.

As a row erupted, restaurant owner Arun Tyagi and nearly 10 employees started beating up the customers. Tyagi took out a pistol and opened fire at them, wounding Surendra (25) and Surendra (26) in their abdomen and thigh respectively.

A third customer, Gaurav Pal alias Babloo, was also beaten by the staff members. All the injured persons were referred to Yashoda hospital where doctors said that Surendra (25) was in critical condition.

"A criminal case had been registered against the hotel owners. Two persons, Arun Tyagi and Imran, have been arrested," said police Inspector Vinod Pandey.