Patna High Court
Ruby DeviversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court provisionally granted anticipatory bail subject to bond and verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedent.
Summary
Ruby Devi, a woman with three prior excise cases, feared arrest under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for alleged recovery of 8 litres of liquor from her house and 52 litres from a nearby drain. She contended that the liquor was in joint family property, she had no conscious possession, and that the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act had abolished the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed her request for anticipatory bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bond of Rs.15,000 with two sureties, directing the trial court to verify her criminal antecedent. The order stipulated that if more than three prior cases are found, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, it would be confirmed forthwith.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted to the petitioner under Section 482(2) of the BNSS in view of the alleged offences under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender, removed by the 2018 amendment to the Bihar Excise Act, preclude the prosecution's case against the petitioner.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Excise Act — s. 30(a)
- BNSS — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- deemed possession
- presumed offender
- joint family property
- criminal antecedent
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.35269 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-806 Year-2025 Thana- SHASTRINAGAR District- Patna
======================================================
Ruby Devi W/o Late Jivan Mistri Resident of - Mauraya Path, Khajpura, P.O -
B. V College, P.S - Shastri Nagar, District - Patna, Pin - 800014, Aadhar No.
318779802176
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Roushan Kumar
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Umanath Mishra
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 22-06-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioner apprehends her 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
petitioner has antecedent of three cases under the Excise Act and
is a woman and allegation is of recovery of 8 liters of liquor
from house of the petitioner and 52 liters of liquor from a place
near a drain situated beside the hut.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner was not apprehended from the spot as such nothing
was recovered from her conscious possession and the house in
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.35269 of 2026(3) dt.22-06-2026
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question is a joint family property, as such, it cannot be alleged
with certainty that it was petitioner who had kept the liquor in
the house or the liquor kept in the house was within her
knowledge and after amendment in the excise act in the year
2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender
has been done away with. It is next submitted that 52 liters of
liquor was recovered from a place which does not belong to the
petitioner, but then is adjacent to her house and she came to be
implicated at the instance of local person, but then it is
submitted that if local person was aware of 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 her 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.
15000/- (Rupees Fifteen Thousand) with two sureties of the like
amount each to the satisfaction of the learned Trial Court where
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.35269 of 2026(3) dt.22-06-2026
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the case is pending/successor court in connection with Shashtri
Nagar P.S. Case No. 806 of 2025 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
three cases then it would be presumed that petitioner, for the
purposes of seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed her
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 only, in that
event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed
forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Rishabh/-
U T
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