Armed robbers barged into a liquor shop at a populated place in Harishchandrapur of Malda district on Wednesday night and decamped with Rs 4 lakh and at least 200 bottles of foreign alcohol after keeping the staff at gun point.

The loot happened around 9pm when the shop was open. The four robbers distributed liquor bottles to customers at the counter to let them leave quickly.

The shop is located near the bus stand at Harishchandrapur which is near the border with Bihar. But police said it was not clear if the gang had arrived from Bihar which is declared as a dry state.

Rahul Pramanik, the shopowner, said: “My employees were selling bottles off the counter when the gang attacked them. Each robber carried a couple of firearms and looted cash and liquor while holding the staff at gun point. They even distributed liquor to those who had come to buy it. While leaving the counter, the gang members fired three rounds in blank to scare away the people around and scampered away.”

The owner of the licensed shop said he was yet to ascertain the cost of the stolen booze. “The robbers took away four-six cases of liquor. Each case has 50 bottles. I need to tally with the stock to find out the brands of the bottles which were stolen.”

Amitabha Maiti, the superintendent of police of Malda, said: “The Harishchandrapur police station area has an interstate border with Bihar. But we are yet to confirm whether the gang had come from Bihar or it was local criminals. The investigation is underway to nab the robbers.”

However, local people believe the robbers had come from Bihar. “Liquor is not available for consumption in Bihar. We think the robbers took away liquor so that they can sell it against exorbitant prices on the clandestine market in the neighbouring state,” said a Harishchandrapur resident.

A large contingent of police had reached the spot after the heist.

Paban Kedia, the secretary of a Harishchandrapur trade body, said local shopowners had asked the police to arrest all the robbers immediately.

“The incident has alarmed many of the businessmen who keep shops open till 10pm. If the dacoits are not arrested, we will launch a movement,” he said.