Patna High Court
Srawan KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to conditions and verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Srawan Kumar, sought anticipatory bail in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for alleged recovery of 23 litres of liquor from a riverbank. He argued that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, the location was public, and the complaint was filed by a hostile watchman who had not reported the matter earlier. The State opposed the bail. The court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail on the condition that the petitioner surrender within six weeks, furnish bail bonds of Rs.5,000 with two sureties, and comply with Section 482(2) of the BNSS. The court directed the trial court to verify the petitioner’s criminal antecedent and confirm the bail if only one prior case is found, otherwise the bail would not be confirmed. The order was pronounced by Justice Satyavrat Verma.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioner is entitled to anticipatory bail under Section 482(2) of the BNSS in the present circumstances.
- Whether the absence of the alleged liquor from the petitioner’s possession and the public nature of the recovery site affect the bail application.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior criminal antecedent influences the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- BNSS — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- criminal antecedent
- FIR
- recovery of liquor
- public place
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.23360 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-26 Year-2026 Thana- SRIPUR District- Gopalganj
======================================================
Srawan Kumar S/o Rudal Sahani R/o Village - Gidaha, P.S - Shreepur,
District - Gopalganj
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Sunil Kumar Singh
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Aditya Narayan Singh.1
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 09-04-2026 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 has antecedent of one case under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 23 litres of liquor from a sack near
bank of a river.
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 villagers at large and he came to be
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.23360 of 2026(2) dt.09-04-2026
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implicated at the instance of Chowkidar with whom he is on an
inimical term. It is next submitted that if Chowkidar was aware
about the involvement of the petitioner in the occurrence, then
why he did not inform the police prior to institution of the
instant FIR, which casts an aspersion on the case of the
prosecution.
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 before the learned trial court 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 Sripur P.S. Case No.
26 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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.23360 of 2026(2) dt.09-04-2026
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Court, as such, the provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be
confirmed, but after verification if it is found that petitioner has
antecedent of one case in that event the provisional anticipatory
bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-
U T
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