Patna High Court

Vinod Sahani @ Binod SahniversusThe State of Bihar

Decided: 13 March 2026
Disposal: DISPOSED
Bench: SATYAVRAT VERMA

Holding

The court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedents.

Summary

Vinod Sahani sought anticipatory bail after learning that he might be arrested in a case under Sections 30(a) and 30(d) of the Bihar Excise Act for allegedly recovering 50 litres of liquor from a public bamboo orchard. He argued that the liquor was not in his possession, the orchard does not belong to him, and the informant’s name was omitted from the FIR, casting doubt on the prosecution’s case. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, after considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail on the condition that the petitioner furnish a bail bond of Rs.5,000 with two sureties and appear before the trial court within six weeks. The order is subject to verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedents; if more than one prior case is found, the bail will not be confirmed, otherwise it will be confirmed forthwith.

Issues considered

Whether the petitioner is entitled to anticipatory bail in a case under the Bihar Excise Act.
Whether the lack of recovery from the petitioner’s possession and the omission of the informant’s name in the FIR affect the bail application.

Legislation cited

BNSS — s. 482(2)

Subjects

anticipatory bail
Bihar Excise Act
liquor seizure
criminal antecedent
provisional bail
Section 482
FIR

Judgment

                      IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                              CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.14860 of 2026
                   Arising Out of PS. Case No.-641 Year-2025 Thana- SAHEBGANJ District- Muzaffarpur
                 ======================================================
                 Vinod Sahani @ Binod Sahni Son of Bhagwan Sahani @ Shri Sahani R/o
                 Village - Bishunpur Kalyan, Tole Nawalpur, P.S. - Sahebganj, District -
                 Muzaffarpur.

                                                                                  ... ... Petitioner/s
                                                       Versus
                 The State of Bihar Bihar

                                                        ... ... Opposite Party/s
                 ======================================================
                 Appearance :
                 For the Petitioner/s     :       Mr.Hari Kishore Thakur
                 For the Opposite Party/s :       Mr.Pronoti Singh
                 ======================================================
                 CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
                                       ORAL ORDER

2   13-03-2026               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 Sections 30(a) and

                   30(d) of the Bihar Excise Act.

                             3.    Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the

                   petitioner has antecedent of one case and allegation is of

                   recovery of 50 litres of liquor from a bamboo orchard.

                             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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.14860 of 2026(2) dt.13-03-2026
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          at the instance of local people, but then the name of the person,

          who disclosed the name of the petitioner is not disclosed in the

          FIR, which casts an aspersion on the case of the prosecution.

                   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 before the learned trial court within a

          period of six weeks from today, be released on Provisional

          anticipatory bail on furnishing bail bonds of Rs. 5,000/- (Rupees

          Five Thousand) 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 Sahebganj P.S. Case

          No. 641 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 more than

          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 confirmed, but after verification if it is found that

          petitioner has antecedent of one case in that event the provisional
              Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.14860 of 2026(2) dt.13-03-2026
                                                          3/3




                        anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.



                                                  (Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-

U         T

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