Patna High Court
BINDU DEVI @ LALMUNI DEVIversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
Provisional anticipatory bail is granted, subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedents, with confirmation if she is found to have a clean record.
Summary
The Patna High Court entertained the petition of Bindu Devi (Lalmuni Devi), who feared arrest in a case registered under the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022 for alleged possession of liquor and jaggery solution. She contended that she has a clean criminal record, the alleged liquor was recovered from locations that do not belong to her, and the house from which some liquor was seized is a joint‑family property, thus negating conscious possession. She further argued that the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act abolished the doctrine of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the grant of anticipatory bail. Applying Section 482(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code, the Court ordered provisional anticipatory bail on the condition of a modest bail bond and two sureties, and directed the trial court to verify her antecedents before confirming the bail.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case under the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act alleging possession of liquor and jaggery solution.
- Whether the 2018 amendment removing the concept of deemed possession affects the petitioner’s liability.
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and the joint‑family nature of the property preclude the presumption of possession.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- possession
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- clean antecedent
- joint family property
- Criminal Procedure Code
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.15734 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-476 Year-2024 Thana- PAHARPUR District- East Champaran
======================================================
BINDU DEVI @ LALMUNI DEVI W/o- Late Binod Mahto Resident of
village- Sareya Briti Dhangar Toli PS- Paharpur District- East Champaran
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Aditya Kumar Pandey
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Arun Kumar
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 30-03-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned
A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioner apprehends her arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Sections 30(a),
30(c), 41(1), 52 of Bihar Prohibition and Excise (amended up-
to-date) Act, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and is a woman and
allegation is of recovery of 30 litres of liquor along with 3900
kilograms of Jaggery solution from six different places as
alleged in the FIR and 5.5 litres of liquor from house of the
petitioner and 4000 litres of Mahua pass from an orchard, which
was destroyed at the spot. It is next submitted that petitioner was
not arrested from the spot as such nothing was recovered from
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.15734 of 2026(3) dt.30-03-2026
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her conscious possession and even alleged recovery is from
places which does not belong to the petitioner 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 in the house was within her
knowledge and after amendment in the Excise Act in the year
2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender
has been done away with and she came to be implicated based
on secret information which is the easiest way to implicate
someone without holding a proper investigation, when petitioner
admittedly is a person with clean antecedent.
4. Learned A.P.P. for the State opposes the prayer for
anticipatory bail of the petitioner.
5. 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 Paharpur P.S. Case No.476/2024, subject to the
conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.15734 of 2026(3) dt.30-03-2026
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6. It is made clear that the learned trial court thereafter
shall verify the criminal antecedents of the petitioner and in the
event if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of even one
case, in that event, it would be presumed that petitioner had
concealed her antecedent before this court, as such, the
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)
amit/-
U T
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