Patna High Court
Piyush KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- BAIL GRANTED
- Bench
- RAJESH KUMAR VERMA
Holding
The Court granted bail to the petitioner, subject to bond and conditions.
Summary
Piyush Kumar was arrested on 28 February 2026 in connection with a case under Sections 30(a) and 47 of the Bihar Prohibition & Excise Act, 2016, after 261 litres of illicit liquor were seized from a motorcycle. The petitioner contended that he neither owned the motorcycle nor had conscious possession of the liquor, and that the seizure violated Sections 103 and 105 of the Bihar Narcotic/Excise (BNSS) Act, 2023. The State opposed bail, noting a similar pending case against the petitioner, but acknowledged that the petitioner was already on bail in that matter. The Court, after considering the lack of conscious possession and the alleged procedural lapses, ordered the release of the petitioner on bail with a bond of Rs.10,000 and two sureties, subject to conditions regarding court attendance, non‑tampering with evidence, and verification of criminal antecedents. The bail bond was to be accepted without delay for verification purposes.
Issues considered
- Whether bail should be granted when the accused is not in conscious possession of the seized liquor.
- Whether non‑compliance of Sections 103 and 105 of the BNSS, 2023 warrants denial of bail.
- Whether the existence of a similar pending case affects the grant of bail in the present matter.
Legislation cited
- BNSS, 2023 — s. 103, 105
Subjects
- bail
- excise
- prohibition
- seizure
- conscious possession
- BNSS 2023
- Bihar
- criminal procedure
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.24238 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-38 Year-2026 Thana- Raghunathpur Excise District- Siwan
======================================================
Piyush Kumar Son of Bhim Sah Resident of village - Saidpura, P.S.- M.H.
Nagar, Distt.- Siwan.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms. Kumari Anupam, Advocate
For the State : Dr. Kumar Uday Pratap, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH KUMAR VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 15-04-2026 Learned counsel for the petitioner is directed to
make necessary correction in paragraph-3 of the bail petition, in
course of the day.
2. Heard Ms. Kumari Anupam, learned counsel for
the petitioner and Dr. Kumar Uday Pratap, learned APP for the
State.
3. Petitioner seeks bail, who is in custody since
28.02.2026, in connection with Raghunathpur P.S. Case No. 38
of 2026, F.I.R. dated 28.02.2026 registered for the offences
punishable under Sections 30(a), 47 of the Bihar Prohibition &
Excise Act, 2016.
4. Recovery is of 261 litres of local liquor.
5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner is innocent and he has been falsely implicated in the
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.24238 of 2026(2) dt.15-04-2026
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present case. He further submits that it appears from the F.I.R.
as well as seizure list that nothing has been recovered from the
conscious possession of the petitioner rather recovery has been
made from the vehicle in question and altogether 261.00 lires of
local liquor was recovered from the motorcycle in question. He
further submits that the petitioner is not the owner of the
motorcycle in question and there is non-compliance of Sections
103 and 105 of BNSS, 2023 and the seizure list witnesses are
police personnel and the petitioner is in custody since
28.02.2026.
6. The learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the
State has vehemently opposed the prayer for bail of the
petitioner and submits that the petitioner carries one more case
of similar nature other than the present one but fairly submits on
the basis of paragraph-3 of the bail petition that the petitioner is
on bail in the pending matter.
7. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case
and the fact that nothing has been recovered from the conscious
possession of the petitioner and there is non-compliance of
Sections 103 and 105 of the BNSS, 2023, let the petitioner,
above named, be released on bail on furnishing bail bond of Rs.
10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand) with two sureties of the like
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.24238 of 2026(2) dt.15-04-2026
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amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive Special
Excise Court No. 02, Siwan in connection with Raghunathpur
P.S. Case No. 38 of 2026, subject to the following conditions :-
(1) Petitioner shall co-operate in the trial and shall be
properly represented on each and every date fixed by the Court
and shall remain physically present as directed by the Court and
on his absence on two consecutive dates without sufficient
reason, his bail bond shall be cancelled by the Court below.
(2) If the petitioner tampers with the evidence or the
witness, in that case, the prosecution will be at liberty to move
for cancellation of bail.
(3) And, further condition that the court below shall
verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in case at
any stage, it is found that the petitioner has concealed his
criminal antecedents, the court below shall take step for
cancellation of bail bond of the petitioner. However, the
acceptance of bail bonds in terms of the above-mentioned order
shall not be delayed for purpose of or in the name of
verification.
Ibrar//- (Rajesh Kumar Verma, J)
U T
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