Patna High Court
Sunaina DeviversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court held that anticipatory bail should be granted provisionally, subject to verification of antecedent, under Section 438(2) of the CrPC.
Summary
Sunaina Devi applied for anticipatory bail anticipating arrest in a case under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act for alleged recovery of 23 litres of liquor from a spot adjacent to her house. She contended that she has a clean antecedent, is a woman, and that the liquor was neither in her possession nor on her property, the allegation arising from a dispute involving a watchman and her husband. The State opposed the bail. Justice Satyavrat Verma directed that she be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing bail bonds of Rs.500 with two sureties, subject to conditions under Section 438(2) of the CrPC and verification of her antecedent. The order further provided that if any prior case is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise it would be confirmed forthwith. The application was allowed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act where the alleged contravention is not in the petitioner’s possession
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and gender warrant anticipatory bail
- Whether the conditions prescribed under Section 438(2) of the CrPC are satisfied
Legislation cited
- Cr.P.C. — s. 438(2)
- Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 438 CrPC
- Excise Act
- clean antecedent
- provisional bail
- liquor seizure
- woman petitioner
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.10003 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-487 Year-2025 Thana- MANJHI District- Saran
======================================================
Sunaina Devi W/o Late Bhuar Chaudhary @ Sunil Chaudhary R/o Vill-
Mahammadpur, Mathanpura, P.S.- Manjhi, Distt-Saran
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms.Shweta Anand
For the Opposite Party/s : Ms.Renu Kumari
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 23-02-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned APP for the State.
2. The petitioner seeks bail in anticipation of her
arrest in a case registered for the offences punishable under
Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
the petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and is a woman
and allegation is of recovery of 23 litres of liquor from a place
adjacent to the wall of the petitioner’s house.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was
recovered from her conscious possession and even alleged
recovery is from a place, which does not belong to the
petitioner, but then, is adjacent to her house and she came to be
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.10003 of 2026(2) dt.23-02-2026
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implicated at the instance of Chaukidar with whom her husband
is on an inimical term. It is further submitted that if Chaukidar
was aware of the involvement of the petitioner in the
occurrence, then why he did not inform the police prior to
institution of the present F.I.R., which casts an aspersion on the
case of the prosecution. It is also submitted that petitioner came
to be implicated only with a view to coerce her husband into
submission.
5. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
6. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner, above-named, in the
event of her arrest or surrender before the learned Court below
within a period of six weeks, is directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on her furnishing bail-bonds in the
sum of Rs.500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) with two sureties of the
like amount each to the satisfaction of the learned Trial Court
where the case is pending/successor Court in connection with
Manjhi P. S. Case No.487 of 2025, subject to the conditions laid
down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
7. The application stands allowed.
8. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.10003 of 2026(2) dt.23-02-2026
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accepting the provisional bail bonds of the petitioner shall verify
the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
found that petitioner has antecedent of even one case, then it
would be presumed that petitioner for the purposes of obtaining
anticipatory bail had concealed her antecedent before this Court,
in that event, the present provisional anticipatory bail order shall
not be confirmed, but if on verification, it is found that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent, in that event, the
provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
vikash/-
U T
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