Patna High Court
Pramod Yadav @ Pramod Kumar YadavversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court conditionally granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioners, subject to verification of their criminal antecedents.
Summary
Petitioners Pramod Yadav and Ganawa Yadav sought anticipatory bail after learning that they might be arrested in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for allegedly recovering 200 litres of liquor and 200 litres of jawa mahua from a forest area. They argued they have no prior criminal record, that the alleged contraband was not found in their possession, and that the recovery took place in a public area, with the complaint apparently motivated by an inimical relationship with the chowkidar who lodged the FIR. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to the petitioners furnishing bail bonds, sureties, and depositing a sum with the Advocates’ Association, and directed verification of their antecedents before confirming the bail. The order also stipulated that if any antecedent is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed for that petitioner. The court exercised its inherent powers under Section 482(2) of the BNSS to issue the provisional bail.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted to the petitioners under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the petitioners have a clean criminal antecedent warranting bail.
- Whether the High Court can conditionally grant anticipatory bail pending verification of antecedents.
Legislation cited
- BNSS — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30
- Section 482
- high court inherent powers
- clean antecedent
- liquor seizure
- forest contraband
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.3465 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-317 Year-2025 Thana- CHAKAND District- Gaya
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1. Pramod Yadav @ Pramod Kumar Yadav S/O Late Karu Yadav @ Late
Sakaldip Yadav R/O Village - Dalli Bigha, P.s.- Belaganj, District -Gaya ji
2. Ganawa Yadav @ Gunama Yadav @ Guna Yadav S/O Rajan Yadav R/O
Village - Dalli Bigha, P.s.- Belaganj, District -Gaya ji
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Durgesh Nandan
For the Opposite Party/s : Ms.Meena Singh
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 29-01-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioners apprehend their arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Section 30(a) of the
Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the
petitioners are person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 200 litres of liquor along with 200 litres of jawa
mahua from a forest area and jawa mahua was destroyed.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the
petitioners were not arrested from the spot as such nothing was
recovered from their conscious possession and even the alleged
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.3465 of 2026(2) dt.29-01-2026
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recovery is from a place which does not belong to the
petitioners and is accessible to public at large and they came to
be implicated at the instance of Chowkidar with whom they are
on an inimical term. It is next submitted that if the Chowkidar
was aware about the involvement of the petitioners 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 petitioners.
6. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioners, the petitioners above-named, in the
event of their 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.
500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) each 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 Chakand
P.S. Case No. 317 of 2025, subject to the conditions as laid
down under Section Section 482(2) of the BNSS.
7. It is made clear that thereafter the learned Trial Court
shall verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioners and in the
event if it is found that petitioners have antecedent of even one
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.3465 of 2026(2) dt.29-01-2026
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case then it would be presumed that petitioners, for the purposes of
seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed their antecedent before
this Court, as such, the provisional anticipatory bail order shall not
be confirmed with respect to that petitioner who had concealed his
criminal antecedent before this Court, but after verification if it is
found that petitioners are person with clean antecedent in that
event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed
forthwith.
8. At this stage, the learned counsel for the petitioners
based on instruction submits that petitioners undertake to deposit
an amount of Rs. 1,500/- with Advocates’ Association, Patna High
Court within a period of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-
U T
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