Patna High Court
Manoj Rai @ Manoj KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The High Court allowed the anticipatory bail application, granting provisional bail subject to bond, sureties, and verification of antecedents.
Summary
Manoj Rai applied for anticipatory bail after the police registered a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022, alleging recovery of 23.345 litres of liquor from his joint family house. The petitioner argued that the liquor was not found in his personal possession, the house is a joint family property, and the case relied on a confessional statement of another accused, which he claimed lacks evidentiary value. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering the weak evidential basis and the petitioner’s two prior excise cases, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.10,000 and two sureties, and conditioned the order on verification of his criminal antecedents under Section 482(2) of the CrPC. The order further stipulated that if more than two prior cases are found, the bail would not be confirmed. The application was allowed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act where the evidence consists mainly of a confessional statement of another accused.
- Whether the joint family nature of the property and lack of personal possession affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior two excise cases justify the grant of provisional anticipatory bail subject to verification.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- confessional statement
- joint family property
- Section 30
- Section 482
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.396 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-617 Year-2025 Thana- VAISHALI District- Vaishali
======================================================
Manoj Rai @ Manoj Kumar Son of Ravindra Rai @ Ravindra Nath Rai R/o
Village - Mauna Mahima, Maun Bishunpur, Himmat, P.S.- Mahua, District -
Vaishali.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms. Archana Jha, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Ramesh Chandra, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 15-01-2026 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 Act, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedents of two cases under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 23.345 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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.396 of 2026(2) dt.15-01-2026
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in the house was within his knowledge and he came to be
implicated based on confessional statement of apprehended
accused in police custody which does not have any evidentiary
value. It is also 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.
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.10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand) with two sureties of
the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Special
Judge, Exclusive Special Prohibition and Excise Court-II-cum-
District & Sessions Judge, Hajipur, Vaishali in connection with
Vaishali O.P. Belsar P.S. Case No.617 of 2025, subject to the
conditions laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. The application stands allowed.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.396 of 2026(2) dt.15-01-2026
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7. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
accepting the provisional bail bonds of the petitioner shall verify
the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
found that petitioner has antecedents of more than two cases,
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 has antecedents of only two cases, in that event,
the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed
forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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