Patna High Court
Om Prakash PaswanversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The High Court held that provisional anticipatory bail may be granted subject to bond and verification of antecedent, and may be revoked if any criminal antecedent is discovered.
Summary
Om Prakash Paswan and Ajay Paswan applied for anticipatory bail after a FIR was lodged under Sections 274, 275 and 3(5) of the Bihar Narcotic Substances Act, 2023 and Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022, alleging recovery of 108 litres of liquor concealed under straw. The petitioners asserted they have clean antecedents, were not arrested at the scene, and that the informant’s identity was omitted from the FIR, casting doubt on the prosecution’s case. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering the lack of direct possession, the petitioners’ clean record, and the need to verify antecedents, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a Rs.500 bond with two sureties and conditions under Section 482(2) of the CrPC. The order directs the Special Judge to verify the petitioners’ criminal antecedent and confirm or revoke the bail accordingly. The application was allowed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case involving alleged liquor offences under the B.N.S. Act and the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act despite the absence of arrest or possession.
- Whether the petitioners’ clean antecedent and the lack of disclosed informant justify the grant of bail.
- Whether the High Court can conditionally grant provisional anticipatory bail pending verification of antecedent under Section 482(2) of the CrPC.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Narcotic Substances Act — s. 274, 275, 3(5)
- Code of Criminal Procedure — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- provisional bail
- liquor offences
- clean antecedent
- Section 482
- Bihar Excise Act
- criminal procedure
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.12963 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-242 Year-2025 Thana- LAUKAHI District- Madhubani
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1. Om Prakash Paswan S/o Chhotelal Paswan R/o Village - Pipraun, P.S -
Laukahi, District - Madhubani
2. Ajay Paswan S/o Chhotelal Paswan R/o Village - Pipraun, P.S - Laukahi,
District - Madhubani
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Arvind Kumar, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Ms. Veena Kumari Jaiswal, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 10-03-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioners apprehend their arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Sections 274, 275
and 3(5) of B.N.S., 2023 as well as Section 30(a) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioners are persons with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 108 litres of liquor concealed beneath the straw at
village Piproun. It is next submitted that petitioners were not
arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was recovered from
their conscious possession and even alleged recovery is from a
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.12963 of 2026(2) dt.10-03-2026
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place which does not belong to the petitioners and petitioners
came to be implicated at the instance of local person but then
name of the person, who disclosed the name of the petitioners,
is not disclosed in the FIR, which casts an aspersion on the case
of the prosecution, when petitioners admittedly are persons with
clean antecedent and have not been implicated based on secret
information.
4. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
5. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioners, the petitioners, above-named, in the
event of their arrest or surrender before the learned Court below
within a period of six weeks, are directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on their furnishing bail-bonds in
the sum of Rs.500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) each with two
sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned
Special Judge, Excise Act, Jhanjharpur, Madhubani in
connection with Laukahi P.S. Case No.242 of 2025, subject to
the conditions laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. The application stands allowed.
7. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
accepting the provisional bail bonds of the petitioners shall
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verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioners and in the event,
if it is found that petitioners have antecedent of even one case,
then it would be presumed that petitioners for the purposes of
obtaining anticipatory bail had concealed their 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 petitioners are persons with clean
antecedent, in that event, the provisional anticipatory bail order
shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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