Patna High Court
Raj Kumar RaiversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court allowed the anticipatory bail application, granting provisional bail subject to conditions and verification of the petitioner’s antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Raj Kumar Rai, applied for anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. in connection with a case alleging violation of Section 30(a) of the Excise Act for the recovery of 198.2 litres of liquor and seizure of a motorcycle. He contended that he had no conscious possession of the liquor, the house was joint family property, and the amendment to the Excise Act in 2018 had abolished the doctrine of deemed possession, making the charge untenable. The State opposed the bail. The Court, after considering the submissions, directed that the petitioner be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing bail bonds and sureties, subject to verification of his criminal antecedent. It further stipulated that if any antecedent is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, the provisional order would be confirmed. The application for anticipatory bail was allowed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted under Section 438 Cr.P.C. when the alleged offence involves alleged possession of liquor without conscious possession.
- Whether the removal of the doctrine of deemed possession by the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act affects the validity of the charge under Section 30(a).
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent warrants the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Criminal Procedure Code — s. 438(2)
- Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- deemed possession
- clean antecedent
- Section 438 Cr.P.C.
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.44076 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-67 Year-2026 Thana- YADOPUR District- Gopalganj
======================================================
Raj Kumar Rai S/O Jagdish Rai R/O Village- Jadopur Mauje, P.S.- Jadopur,
District - Gopalganj.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms.Shubhangi Pandey
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Chandra Bhushan Prasad- A.P.P.
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 07-07-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned APP for the State.
2. The petitioner seeks bail in anticipation of his
arrest in a case registered for the offences punishable under
Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
the petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is
of recovery of 198.2 litres of liquor out of which 144.2 litres of
liquor is alleged to have been recovered from the house of the
petitioner and a motorcycle was also seized.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was
recovered from his conscious possession and is not the owner of
the seized motorcycle and even the house in question is a joint
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.44076 of 2026(2) dt.07-07-2026
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family property and thus, it cannot be alleged with certainty that
it was the 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, 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, when admittedly petitioner is a person with clean
antecedent.
5. Learned A.P.P. Sri Chandra Bhushan Prasad
opposes the anticipatory bail application.
6. 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-bonds in the
sum 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
Yadopur P. S. Case No.67 of 2026, subject to the conditions laid
down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
7. The application stands allowed.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.44076 of 2026(2) dt.07-07-2026
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8. 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 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.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
vikash/-
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