Patna High Court
Rabindra RaiversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court held that anticipatory bail may be granted conditionally despite the allegations, subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedents.
Summary
The petitioner, Rabindra Rai, sought anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Sections 274 and 275 of the Bihar Narcotic Substances Act and Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, alleging recovery of 80 litres of liquor from his joint family house. He contended that no liquor was found in his conscious possession, the property is jointly owned, and the concept of deemed possession was abolished by the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act. The State opposed the bail, arguing the seriousness of the offences. The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail on the condition of a Rs.20,000 bond, two sureties, and verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedents, directing that if more than four prior cases are found, the bail will not be confirmed, whereas if exactly four are found, it will be confirmed. The order is subject to Section 482(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case involving alleged possession of liquor under the Bihar Narcotic Substances Act and Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
- Whether the petitioner can be deemed to have possessed the liquor given the joint family ownership and lack of conscious possession.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior criminal antecedents affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Narcotic Substances Act — s. 274, 275
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise
- joint family property
- deemed possession
- bail conditions
- criminal antecedents
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.19448 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-13 Year-2026 Thana- KESARIA District- East Champaran
======================================================
Rabindra Rai S/o- Jokhan Rai @ Jokhan Ray R/v- Kadhan W.No-9, Ps-
Kesariya Dist- East Champaran
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Abhishek Kumar
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Anand Kishore Choudhary
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 26-03-2026 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 offence punishable under Sections 274, 275 of
the BNS and Section 30(a) of Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedent of four cases under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 80 litres of liquor from the house of
petitioner. It is next submitted that petitioner was not arrested
from the spot as such nothing was recovered from his conscious
possession 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 his knowledge and after amendment in the
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.19448 of 2026(2) dt.26-03-2026
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Excise Act in the year 2018, the concept of deemed possession
and presumed offender has been done away with and he came to
be implicated at the instance of local person and chowkidar but
then it is submitted that once an accused is implicated in a case
relating to excise, the police starts implicating mechanically
either through chowkidar, local person, confessional statement
or secret information without holding a proper investigation. It
is next submitted that petitioner in similar manner earlier also
came to be implicated in cases relating to excise.
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.20,000/- (Rupees twenty 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 Kesariya P.S. Case No.13/2026, subject to
the conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the
B.N.S.S.
6. It is made clear that the learned trial court thereafter
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.19448 of 2026(2) dt.26-03-2026
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shall verify the criminal antecedents of the petitioner and in the
event if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of more than
four cases, in that event, it would be presumed that petitioner
had concealed his antecedent before this court, as such, the
provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed but if
on verification it is found that petitioner has antecedent of four
cases, in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall
be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
amit/-
U T
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