Patna High Court
Chandan KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner, subject to bond, sureties, and verification of his antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Chandan Kumar, applied for anticipatory bail in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act for the alleged recovery of 30 litres of liquor from an open area near his house. He argued that he has a clean antecedent, the liquor was not in his conscious possession, and the complaint was filed by a hostile watchman, raising doubts about the prosecution’s case. The State opposed the bail. The Court, applying Section 438(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code, directed that the petitioner be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties, subject to verification of his antecedent. The order also required the petitioner to deposit Rs.1,500 with the Lawyers’ Association within two weeks. The application was allowed, with the proviso that if any prior case is discovered, the bail may be revoked.
Issues considered
- What is the appropriateness of granting anticipatory bail under Section 438 CrPC in a case under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act where the alleged contraband was not in the petitioner’s possession?
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and the circumstances of the recovery justify the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 438(2)
- Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 438 CrPC
- Excise Act
- liquor seizure
- clean antecedent
- bail bond
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.4470 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-222 Year-2025 Thana- KACCHWA District- Rohtas
======================================================
Chandan Kumar S/o Rakesh Chaudhary @ Lakhamichand Choudhary
Resident of Village- Mangraw, P.S.- Kachchawa, District- Rohtas
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms. Nandani Kumari
Mr. Siddharth Harsh
For the Opposite Party/s: Mr. Arun Kumar Singh
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 31-01-2026 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 30 litres of liquor from an open space in front of
the house of the petitioner.
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 even alleged
recovery is from a place, which does not belong to the
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4470 of 2026(2) dt.31-01-2026
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petitioner, but then, is accessible to public at large and he came
to be implicated at the instance of Chaukidar with whom he is
on an inimical term. It is further submitted that if Chaukidar was
aware of the involvement of the petitioners in the occurrence,
then why he did not inform the police prior to institution of the
present F.I.R., which casts an aspersion on the case of the
prosecution. It is next submitted that since the recovery was
made from a place adjacent to the house of the petitioner, as
such, the Chaukidar took the same as an opportunity to
implicate the petitioner in the instant case.
5. Learned A.P.P. 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
Kachchawa P. S. Case No.222 of 2025, subject to the conditions
laid down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4470 of 2026(2) dt.31-01-2026
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7. The application stands allowed.
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.
9. At this stage, the learned counsel appearing on
behalf of the petitioner based on instruction submits that
petitioner undertakes to deposit an amount of Rs.1500/- with
Lawyers’ Association, Patna High Court, Patna within a period
of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
vikash/-
U T
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