Patna High Court
Santosh KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner, subject to a bail bond, sureties, and verification of his antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Santosh Kumar, applied for anticipatory bail after being implicated in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022 for allegedly possessing 20 litres of liquor recovered from a bush. He argued he had a clean antecedent, the liquor was not in his conscious possession, and the complainant (the chowkidar) failed to inform police earlier, casting doubt on the prosecution's case. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, directed the petitioner to be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties, subject to conditions under Section 482(2) and verification of his criminal antecedent. The court clarified that if any antecedent 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 to the petitioner under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022.
- Whether the circumstances of alleged possession and the complainant's conduct justify granting bail.
- Whether the conditions prescribed under Section 482(2) are applicable to the provisional bail order.
Legislation cited
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 30(a)
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- provisional bail
- criminal antecedent
- Section 482(2)
- High Court
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.175 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-779 Year-2025 Thana- BIKRAMGANJ District- Rohtas
======================================================
Santosh Kumar S/O Dinanath Yadav Resident of Village - Ghusia Kala Police
Station- Bikramganj, District- Rohtas
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Raghunandan Kumar Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Nitya Nand Tiwary, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 13-01-2026 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, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 20 litres of liquor from a bush. It is next submitted
that petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing
was recovered from his conscious possession and even alleged
recovery is from a place which does not belong to the petitioner
and he came to be implicated at the instance of Chowkidar but
then it is submitted that if Chowkidar was aware of the
involvement of the petitioner in the occurrence then why he did
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.175 of 2026(2) dt.13-01-2026
2/3
not inform the police prior to institution of the instant FIR
which casts an aspersion on the case of the prosecution.
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.500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) with two sureties of the
like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive Special
Judge, Excise Court No.1, Rohtas at Sasaram in connection with
Bikramganj P.S. Case No.779 of 2025, 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 bonds of the petitioner 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 obtaining
anticipatory bail had concealed his antecedent before this Court,
in that event, the present provisional anticipatory bail order shall
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.175 of 2026(2) dt.13-01-2026
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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)
Sanjay/-
U T
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