Manoj SinhaversusThe State of Bihar

                      IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                              CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.18866 of 2026
                     Arising Out of PS. Case No.-149 Year-2021 Thana- Excise P.S. District- Kishanganj
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                 Manoj Sinha S/O Sagar Sinha R/O House No.- 45, S.R Das Road, P.S-
                 Tollygunj, Dist - Kolkatta, State- West Bengal
                                                                       ... ... Petitioner/s
                                                     Versus
                 The State of Bihar
                                                                ... ... Opposite Party/s
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                 Appearance :
                 For the Petitioner/s     :         Mr. Mritunjay Kumar, Advocate
                 For the Opposite Party/s :         Mr. Chandra Bhushan Prasad, A.P.P.
                 ======================================================
                 CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
                                       ORAL ORDER

2   26-03-2026                  1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr.

                   Chandra Bhushan Prasad, learned A.P.P. for the State.

                                2. The petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case

                   registered for the offences punishable under Sections 272 and

                   273 of the Indian Penal Code as well as Section 30(a) of the

                   Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018.

                                3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that

                   petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of

                   recovery of 99 litres of liquor from a car.

                                4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that

                   petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was

                   recovered from his conscious possession. It is further submitted

                   that petitioner came to be implicated based on the fact that he is

                   owner of the seized vehicle. It is next submitted that no prudent

                   person would use his own vehicle for committing an occurrence
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          and, thus, would create evidence against himself and, hence,

          would get implicated. It is also submitted that petitioner was

          completely unaware that his friend would misuse the vehicle in

          the manner as alleged who also fled from the spot.

                       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, let 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 Kishanganj Excise P.S. Case No. 149 of

          2021, subject to the conditions as laid down under Section

          438(2) of the Cr.P.C./482(2) of the B.N.S.S.

                       7. However, it is made clear that thereafter the learned

          Trial Court shall verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioner

          and if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of even one case,

          it would be presumed that petitioner had concealed his

          antecedent before this Court at para 3 of the anticipatory bail

          application in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order
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                     shall not be confirmed but if it is found on verification that

                     petitioner is a person with clean antecedent in that event the

                     provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.


                                                                          (Satyavrat Verma, J)

Kundan/-

U     T