Patna High Court
Sudhir Sah @ Sudhir KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court conditionally granted provisional anticipatory bail, subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedent cases.
Summary
The petitioner, Sudhir Kumar, sought anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act alleging recovery of 97.275 litres of liquor from a cattle shed adjacent to his house. He argued that no liquor was seized from his possession, the informant’s name was omitted from the FIR, and the investigation was mechanically based on secret information. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail on condition of furnishing a bail bond of Rs.15,000 with two sureties, subject to verification of his criminal antecedents. The court stipulated that if verification reveals more than three prior cases, the bail would not be confirmed; if exactly three, the provisional order would be confirmed. The order was made under Section 482(2) of the BNSS.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act where the alleged seizure was not from the accused's possession.
- Whether the presence of prior criminal antecedents affects the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether the omission of the informant’s name in the FIR undermines the prosecution’s case.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Criminal Procedure Code — s. 482(2)
- Bihar Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- Section 30
- Section 482
- Bihar Excise Act
- criminal antecedent
- secret informant
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.31519 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-106 Year-2026 Thana- MADHUBANI TOWN District-
Madhubani
======================================================
Sudhir Sah @ Sudhir Kumar S/o Late Tulsi Sah R/o - J.P Colony, P.S - Town,
District - Madhubani.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Ashok Kumar Alias Ashok Karn
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Pronoti Singh
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 12-05-2026 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 three cases out of which two cases
are under the Excise Act and allegation is of recovery of 97.275
litres of liquor from a cattle shed adjacent to the house of the
petitioner.
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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.31519 of 2026(2) dt.12-05-2026
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recovery is from a place which does not belong to the petitioner
but then is adjacent to his house and he came to be implicated at
the instance of local people, but then the name of the person,
who disclosed the name of the petitioner, is not disclosed in the
FIR, which casts an aspersion on the case of the prosecution,
when petitioner has not been implicated based on secret
information. It is further submitted that once an accused is
implicated in a case relating to excise, the police starts
implicating mechanically either at the instance of Chowkidar,
local person, confessional statement or secret information
without holding a proper investigation.
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.
15,000/- (Rupees Fifteen 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
Madhubani Town P.S. Case No. 106 of 2026, subject to the
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.31519 of 2026(2) dt.12-05-2026
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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 three cases then it would be presumed that petitioner, for
the purposes of seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed his
antecedent before this Court, as such, the provisional
anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed, but after
verification if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of three
cases in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall
be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-
U T
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