Ghaziabad | A 22-year-old woman was shot at in a village here by a man she had been in a relationship with for five years after he learnt that her marriage had been fixed with someone else, police said.

The incident took place in Nanglaber village in the Bhojpur area on Saturday evening, Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP) Modinagar Amit Saxena said.

The 28-year-old accused, Pradeep Kumar, allegedly barged into the woman's house and fired at her with a country-made pistol.

She collapsed on the floor, following which family members and neighbours rushed her to a nearby hospital in Modinagar. She was later referred to Meerut for specialised treatment, the officer said.

According to doctors, the bullet is lodged superficially in her skull near the ear, and a neurosurgeon is expected to perform surgery to remove it on Monday, the ACP said.

Police said the woman, an MSc first-year student, had stopped speaking to Pradeep in recent weeks. He was reportedly upset that her wedding had been arranged with someone else.

Pradeep had also spent substantial money on her and was paying EMIs for an air conditioner installed in her home, officials said.

"He felt insulted among his friends after learning about her marriage," Saxena said.

Police teams are conducting raids at Pradeep's possible hideouts, the officer said.