Patna High Court
Bittu Kumar @ Vitu KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to conditions and verification of the petitioner’s antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Bittu Kumar, sought anticipatory bail after an FIR was lodged under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act alleging recovery of 15 litres of liquor from a public area. He argued that he had no prior criminal record, the liquor was not found in his possession, and the complaint originated from a hostile watchman rather than any direct police observation. The State opposed the bail, contending the seriousness of the offence. The High Court, after considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on a modest bail bond and two sureties, directing the trial court to verify the petitioner’s antecedent before confirming the bail. The order emphasized that any undisclosed prior case would invalidate the provisional bail, which would then not be confirmed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and lack of possession of the alleged liquor justify granting anticipatory bail.
- Whether the trial court must verify the petitioner’s criminal antecedent before confirming the provisional anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Negotiable Securities Act (BNSS) — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- clean antecedent
- provisional bail
- criminal procedure
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.1164 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-270 Year-2025 Thana- SRINAGAR District- West Champaran
======================================================
Bittu Kumar @ Vitu Kumar S/o Shivnath Prasad Resident Of Village-
Koiripati, Ps- Srinagar, Dist- West Champaran
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Ram Kishun Prasad
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Yogendra Kumar Singh
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 16-03-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Section 30(a) of the
Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 15 litres of liquor from a bag near Koiripatti ghat.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner was not arrested from the spot as such nothing was
recovered from his conscious possession and even the alleged
recovery is from a place which does not belong to the petitioner
and is accessible to public at large and he came to be implicated
at the instance of Chowkidar with whom he is on an inimical
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term. It is next submitted that if the Chowkidar was aware
about the involvement of the petitioner in the occurrence, then
why he did not inform the police prior to institution of the
instant FIR, which casts an aspersion on the case of the
prosecution, when petitioner admittedly is a person with clean
antecedent.
5. Learned A.P.P. for the State opposes the prayer for
anticipatory bail of the petitioner.
6. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner above-named, in the
event of his arrest or surrender within a period of six weeks
from today, be released on Provisional anticipatory bail on
furnishing bail bonds 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 Srinagar P.S. Case No. 270 of 2025, subject to
the conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the BNSS.
7. It is made clear that thereafter the learned Trial Court
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
seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed his antecedent before this
Court, as such, the provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be
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confirmed, but after verification if 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)
Sumit/-
U T
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