Patna High Court
Ramjinis Mahto @ Dinesh Mahto @ Jinish MahtoversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court held that provisional anticipatory bail should be granted subject to conditions and verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Ramjinis Mahto, sought anticipatory bail in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act for alleged possession of liquor recovered from his house and a motorcycle. He argued that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, the house was joint family property, and the investigation was based on secret information without proper inquiry. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, after considering the submissions, directed that the petitioner be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing a bail bond of Rs.5,000 with two sureties, subject to verification of his criminal antecedent under Section 482(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The order stipulated that if more than one antecedent case is found, 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 Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
- Whether the petitioner’s criminal antecedent affects the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether provisional anticipatory bail pending verification of antecedent is appropriate.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise
- Section 30
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- criminal antecedent
- provisional bail
- Section 482
- high court
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.13714 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-122 Year-2023 Thana- Excise P.S. District- Sheohar
======================================================
Ramjinis Mahto @ Dinesh Mahto @ Jinish Mahto S/O Late Shivdhari Mahto
R/O Village- Chhatauni Vishanpur, P.S- Piprahi, Distt.- Sheohar.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Hans Lal Kumar, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Sanjay Kumar, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 12-03-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case registered
for the offence punishable under Section 30(a) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedent of one case and allegation is of
recovery of 27 litres of liquor from house of the petitioner and 3
litres of liquor from a motorcycle. It is next submitted that
petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was
recovered from his conscious possession and is not the owner of
the seized vehicle and the house in question is a joint family
property, as such, it cannot be alleged with certainty that it was
petitioner who had kept the liquor in the house or the liquor kept
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.13714 of 2026(2) dt.12-03-2026
2/3
in the house was within his knowledge and he came to be
implicated based on secret information which is the easiest way
to implicate someone. It is next submitted that once an accused
is implicated in a case relating to excise, the police starts
implicating mechanically either at the instance of Chowkidar,
local person, confessional statement or secret information
without holding a proper investigation.
4. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
5. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner, above-named, in the
event of his arrest or surrender before the learned Court below
within a period of six weeks, is directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on his furnishing bail-bond in the
sum of Rs.5,000/- (Rupees Five Thousand) with two sureties of
the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive
Special Excise, Sheohar in connection with Sheohar Excise P.S.
Case No.122 of 2023, 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 bond of the petitioner shall verify
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.13714 of 2026(2) dt.12-03-2026
3/3
the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
found that petitioner has antecedent of more than one case, then
it would be presumed that petitioner for the purposes of
obtaining anticipatory bail had concealed his 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 has antecedent of only one case, in that event, the
provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
Checking your session…