Patna High Court
Kundan KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court conditionally granted provisional anticipatory bail, subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedents, because no conscious possession was established and the confessional statement lacked evidentiary value.
Summary
The petitioner, Kundan Kumar, sought anticipatory bail after learning that he might be arrested in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for alleged recovery of 100 litres of liquor from a motorcycle. He argued that he was not arrested on the spot, no liquor was found in his conscious possession, and he was not the owner of the seized vehicle. The prosecution’s case relied on a confessional statement made by Jitendra Kumar while in police custody, which the petitioner contended lacked evidentiary value, especially after the 2018 amendment that abolished the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the bail, but the court noted the lack of direct possession and the questionable reliability of the confessional statement. Accordingly, the court granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on a bail bond of Rs.5,000 with two sureties and subject to verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedents under Section 482(2) of the BNSS. The bail will be confirmed only if the trial court finds that the petitioner has a single prior case; otherwise, the provisional order will lapse.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted when the alleged offence is under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act and the accused lacks conscious possession of the liquor.
- Whether a confessional statement made in police custody, without corroboration, can form the basis for arrest and denial of bail.
- Effect of the 2018 amendment to the Bihar Excise Act removing the doctrine of deemed possession and presumed offender on bail considerations.
- Whether Section 482(2) of the BNSS permits the court to impose conditions pending verification of the accused’s criminal antecedents.
Legislation cited
- BNSS — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- confessional statement
- deemed possession
- presumed offender
- Section 482(2) BNSS
- criminal antecedent
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.15924 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-43 Year-2026 Thana- KAUWAKOL District- Nawada
======================================================
Kundan Kumar Son of Makku Yadav R/o Village - Pachamba, P.S. - Kawakol,
Dist. - Nawada.
... ... Petitioner
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Devendra Prasad Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Suman Kumari Singh, A.P.P.
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 17-03-2026 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 offence punishable under Section 30(a) of the
Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedent of one case under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 100 liters of liquor from a
motorcycle.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits 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 came to be implicated based on
confessional statement of Jitendra Kumar in police custody
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which does not have any evidentiary value and after amendment
in the Excise Act in the year 2018, the concept of deemed
possession and presumed offender has been done away with.
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. 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 Kawakol P.S. Case No. 43 of 2026
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
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verification if it is found that petitioner has only one antecedent,
in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be
confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Gaurav Sinha/-
U T
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