Patna High Court
Bharat PasiversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner subject to conditions under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
Summary
Bharat Pasi applied for anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. after a case was registered against him for alleged offences under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act involving the recovery of liquor from various locations. The petitioner asserted that he had no prior criminal record, that the liquor was not found in his possession, and that the allegations were based on secret information without proper investigation. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, after considering the submissions, directed that the petitioner be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing bail bonds of Rs.500 with two sureties, subject to verification of his antecedent and compliance with Section 438(2) conditions. The court clarified that if any antecedent is discovered, the provisional 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 438 Cr.P.C. in view of the alleged offences under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent warrants the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether the nature of the alleged liquor recovery justifies denial of bail.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 438(2)
- Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 438 Cr.P.C.
- Excise Act
- liquor seizure
- clean antecedent
- bail conditions
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.29882 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-399 Year-2025 Thana- MANJHAGARH District- Gopalganj
======================================================
Bharat Pasi Son of Late Ramlal Pasi Resident of village - Manjha, Purani
Bazar, Police Station - Manjhagarh, District - Gopalganj.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Lokesh Kumar Singh
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Tarkeshwar Nath Thakur
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 06-05-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned APP for the State.
2. The petitioner seeks bail in anticipation of his
arrest in a case registered for the offences punishable under
Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
the petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is
of recovery of 30 litres of liquor from a bush near bank of a
river, 1.4 litres of liquor from cattleshed of Shobhawati Devi
and 15 litres of liquor from a place near a government sewer.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits 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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.29882 of 2026(2) dt.06-05-2026
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and petitioner has no concern with Shobhawati, but then he
came to be implicated based on secret information, which is the
easiest way to implicate someone without holding a proper
investigation, when admittedly petitioner is a person with clean
antecedent.
5. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
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 Court below
within a period of six weeks, is directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on his furnishing bail-bonds in the
sum 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
Manjhagarh P. S. Case No.399 of 2025, subject to the conditions
laid down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
7. The application stands allowed.
8. 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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.29882 of 2026(2) dt.06-05-2026
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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
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)
vikash/-
U T
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