Patna High Court
Baiju SahversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court allowed the anticipatory bail application, granting provisional bail subject to bond, sureties, and verification of antecedents.
Summary
Petitioner Baiju Sah sought anticipatory bail after the police registered a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act alleging that 47.07 litres of liquor were recovered from his jointly‑owned house. He argued that he was not arrested on the spot, had no conscious possession of the liquor, and that the alleged possession was in a joint family property, making it uncertain that he knew of the liquor. The prosecution’s case relied on a confessional statement by Sanju Devi, the petitioner's wife, made while in police custody, which the petitioner contended was coerced and thus inadmissible. The court considered the amendment removing the doctrine of deemed possession and presumed offender, and noted the petitioner’s clean antecedent. It granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties, verification of antecedents, and a condition to deposit Rs.1,500 with the Advocates’ Association, pending confirmation of the order.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act.
- Whether the confessional statement of the petitioner’s wife made in police custody is admissible.
- Whether the doctrine of deemed possession applies after the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act.
- Whether joint family ownership of the premises negates the petitioner’s liability.
Legislation cited
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 30
- excise law
- confessional statement
- joint family property
- clean antecedent
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.3543 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-131 Year-2025 Thana- ANGARGHAT District- Samastipur
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Baiju Sah Son of Late Sajani Sah Resident of village - Supaul, Police Station
- Angarghat, District - Samastipur
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Mahendra Pratap, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Parmanand Prasad, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 29-01-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case registered
for the offence punishable under Section 30(a) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 47.07 litres of liquor from house of the petitioner. It
is next submitted that petitioner was not arrested from the spot,
as such, nothing was recovered from his conscious possession
and the house in 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 his knowledge and after amendment in the Excise Act in
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.3543 of 2026(2) dt.29-01-2026
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the year 2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed
offender has been done away with and he came to be implicated
based on confessional statement of Sanju Devi in police
custody, which does not have any evidentiary value. It is also
submitted that Sanju Devi is wife of the petitioner and she was
made to confess the name of the petitioner in police custody,
when petitioner admittedly is a person with clean antecedent.
4. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
5. 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-bond in the
sum of Rs.500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) with two sureties of the
like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive Court
of learned Special Judge Excise-I, Samastipur in connection
with Angarghat P.S. Case No.131 of 2025, subject to the
conditions laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. The application stands allowed.
7. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
accepting the provisional bail bond of the petitioner shall verify
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.3543 of 2026(2) dt.29-01-2026
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the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
found that petitioner has antecedent of even one case, then it
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.
8. At this stage, learned counsel for the petitioner,
based on instruction, submits that petitioner undertakes to
deposit an amount of Rs.1500/- with Advocates’ Association,
Patna High Court within a period of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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