Patna High Court
Dharmendra ChaudharyversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court ordered provisional anticipatory bail subject to bond, sureties, and verification of the petitioner’s antecedents.
Summary
The petitioner, Dharmendra Chaudhary, sought anticipatory bail fearing arrest under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act for alleged possession of 10 litres of liquor recovered from his joint family house. He argued he had a clean antecedent, was not arrested at the scene, and that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, especially after the 2018 amendment that removed the concept of deemed possession. The State opposed the bail. The court granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties and directed the trial court to verify the petitioner’s criminal antecedents; if any antecedent is found, the bail will not be confirmed, otherwise it will be confirmed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case of alleged possession under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
- Whether the 2018 amendment removing deemed possession affects the applicability of the charge.
- Whether the joint family nature of the property negates the allegation of possession by the petitioner.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act — s. 30(a)
- Criminal Procedure Code — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- possession
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- joint family property
- criminal antecedent
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- bail conditions
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.37968 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-61 Year-2026 Thana- BELSAND District- Sitamarhi
======================================================
Dharmendra Chaudhary Son of Kishori Chaudhary Resident of Village -
Jafarpur, Ward No. - 8, Das Tola, P.S. - Belsand, District - Sitamarhi.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Santosh Kumar
For the Opposite Party/s : Ms. Indu Kumari Srivastava
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 17-06-2026 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 offence punishable under Section 30(a) of
Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 10 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 the year
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.37968 of 2026(2) dt.17-06-2026
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2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender
has been done away with and he came to be implicated based on
secret information which is the easiest way to implicate
someone without holding a proper investigation.
4. Learned A.P.P. for the State opposes the prayer for
anticipatory bail of the petitioner.
5. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner above-named, in the
event of his arrest or surrender within a period of six weeks
from today, be released on provisional anticipatory bail on
furnishing bail bonds 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 Belsand P.S. Case No.61/2026, subject to the
conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. It is made clear that the learned trial court thereafter
shall verify the criminal antecedents of the petitioner and in the
event if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of even one
case, in that event, it would be presumed that petitioner had
concealed his antecedent before this court, as such, the
provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed but if
on verification it is found that petitioner is a person with clean
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.37968 of 2026(2) dt.17-06-2026
3/3
antecedent, in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order
shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
amit/-
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