Patna High Court
Arjun Chaudhary @ Arun ChaudharyversusThe 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
Arjun Chaudhary applied for anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022, where three litres of liquor were recovered from his joint family house. He argued that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, the house is a joint family property, and the investigation was based merely on secret information without proper inquiry. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.5,000, two sureties of equal amount, and compliance with conditions under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S., including verification of his criminal antecedents. The order further directed the petitioner to deposit Rs.2,500 with the High Court Legal Services Committee within two weeks. The bail will be confirmed only if verification shows he has at most one prior case; otherwise, it will be withdrawn.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022.
- Whether the absence of conscious possession and the joint family nature of the property negate the basis for arrest.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior criminal antecedents affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether the conditions imposed under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S. are appropriate for provisional bail.
Legislation cited
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- Section 30(a)
- joint family property
- bail bond
- criminal antecedent
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- Section 482
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.4844 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-146 Year-2025 Thana- CHERKI District- Gaya
======================================================
Arjun Chaudhary @ Arun Chaudhary Son of Rambhajan Chaudhary @
Bhajan chaudhary Resident of Village- Dirawan, P.S.- Cherki, District- Gaya,
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Gajendra Kumar Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Ms. Shaheen Begum, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 02-02-2026 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, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedent of one case under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 3 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 he came to be
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implicated based on secret information, which is the easiest way
to implicate someone. It is also submitted that once an accused
is implicated in a case relating to excise, the plice 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.5,000/- (Rupees Five Thousand) with two sureties of
the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive
Special Excise Court No.1, Gaya Jee in connection with Cherki
P.S. Case No.146 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
the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
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found that petitioner has antecedent of more than 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 has antecedent of only one case, 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.2500/- with High Court Legal Services
Committee, Patna within a period of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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