Patna High Court

Bittu Kumar Sah @ Bittu SahversusThe State of Bihar

Decided: 17 March 2026
Disposal: DISPOSED
Bench: SATYAVRAT VERMA

Holding

The court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner, subject to verification of his criminal antecedent.

Summary

The petitioner, Bittu Kumar Sah, was implicated in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for allegedly recovering nine litres of liquor from a public bush. He argued that he had no prior criminal record, the liquor was not found in his possession, and the FIR did not name him, suggesting a lack of solid evidence. The State opposed his request for anticipatory bail. The High Court, after considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail on the condition that the petitioner furnish a bail bond of Rs. 500 with two sureties and that the trial court verify his antecedent. If the verification reveals a clean record, the provisional bail will be confirmed; otherwise, it will be revoked. The order was made subject to the provisions of Section 482(2) of the BNSS.

Issues considered

Whether the petitioner is entitled to anticipatory bail under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act given the circumstances of the alleged offence.
Whether the lack of recovery from the petitioner's possession and omission of his name in the FIR justify granting anticipatory bail.

Legislation cited

Bihar Negotiable Securities Act (BNSS) — s. 482(2)

Subjects

anticipatory bail
Bihar Excise Act
Section 30(a)
clean antecedent
provisional bail
FIR omission

Judgment

                      IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                              CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.16171 of 2026
                   Arising Out of PS. Case No.-172 Year-2025 Thana- Pachpakdi District- East Champaran
                 ======================================================
                 Bittu Kumar Sah @ Bittu Sah Son of Sunil Sah Resident of Village -
                 Devapur, P.S. - Pachpakari, DIst. - East Champaran.

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

                                                        ... ... Opposite Party/s
                 ======================================================
                 Appearance :
                 For the Petitioner/s     :        Mr.Abhishek Kumar
                 For the Opposite Party/s :        Mr.Satyendra Prasad
                 ======================================================
                 CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
                                       ORAL ORDER

2   17-03-2026               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 Section 30(a) of the

                   Bihar Excise Act.

                             3.    Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the

                   petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of

                   recovery of 9 litres of liquor from a bush.

                             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 at

                   the instance of local people, but then the name of the person, who
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.16171 of 2026(2) dt.17-03-2026
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          disclosed the name of the petitioner is not disclosed in the FIR,

          which casts an aspersion on the case of the prosecution, moreso

          when petitioner has not been implicated based on secret

          information.

                   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. 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 Pachpakri P.S. Case No. 172 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 even 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 is a

          person with clean antecedent in that event the provisional
              Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.16171 of 2026(2) dt.17-03-2026
                                                          3/3




                        anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.



                                                  (Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-

U         T

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