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Patna High Court

Sintu Kumar @ Sintu ChoudharyversusThe State of Bihar

Decided
Disposal
DISPOSED

Holding

The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner, subject to bail bonds, sureties and verification of his antecedent under Section 438(2) Cr.P.C.

Summary

The petitioner, Sintu Kumar, applied for anticipatory bail anticipating arrest under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act for alleged possession of 15 litres of liquor. He argued he has a clean antecedent, the liquor was recovered from a joint family property, and the complaint was motivated by an inimical watchman. The State opposed the bail. The Court, considering the submissions, directed that the petitioner be released on provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing bail bonds of Rs.500 with two sureties, subject to conditions under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C. The order is conditional on verification of his antecedent; if any prior case is found, the bail may be withdrawn. The petitioner also undertook to deposit Rs.1,500 with the Advocates’ Association. The application was allowed.

Issues considered

  • Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act involving alleged possession of liquor.
  • Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and lack of direct possession justify granting anticipatory bail.
  • Whether the conditions prescribed under Section 438(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code are satisfied.

Legislation cited

Subjects

  • anticipatory bail
  • Section 438
  • Excise Act
  • liquor possession
  • clean antecedent
  • provisional bail
  • bail conditions

Judgment

                      IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                              CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.4991 of 2026
                     Arising Out of PS. Case No.-160 Year-2025 Thana- Banma Itahari District- Saharsa
                 ======================================================
                 Sintu Kumar @ Sintu Choudhary Son of Ramvilash Choudhary Resident of
                 village- Pahlam Ps- Banma Ithari, Dist- Saharsa

                                                                                     ... ... Petitioner/s
                                                         Versus
                 The State of Bihar

                                                        ... ... Opposite Party/s
                 ======================================================
                 Appearance :
                 For the Petitioner/s     :        Mr.Pankaj Kumar Singh
                 For the Opposite Party/s :        Mr.Md. Nazir Ansari
                 ======================================================
                 CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
                                       ORAL ORDER

2   02-02-2026                   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 15 litres of liquor from courtyard 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 the house in

                   question is a joint family property and thus, it cannot be alleged

                   with certainty that it was the petitioner, who had kept the liquor
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4991 of 2026(2) dt.02-02-2026
                                            2/3




          in the house or the liquor kept in the house was within his

          knowledge 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.

                       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

          Banma Ithari P. S. Case No.160 of 2025, subject to the

          conditions laid down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.

                       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
               Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4991 of 2026(2) dt.02-02-2026
                                                           3/3




                         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

                         Advocates’ Association, Patna High Court, Patna within a

                         period of two weeks from today.



                                                   (Satyavrat Verma, J)
vikash/-

U          T


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