Patna High Court
Punit Rai @ Shubham KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioner subject to specified conditions and verification of his antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Punit Rai, was implicated in a case under Section 111 of the BNS read with Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for allegedly recovering 43.2 litres of liquor from a motorcycle. He contended that he has a clean antecedent, was not apprehended at the spot, did not have possession of the liquor, and was not the owner of the seized vehicle, further noting that his name was absent from the FIR. The State opposed his request for anticipatory bail. The High Court, after considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties and a condition that the trial court verify his antecedent within six weeks. The order also stipulated that if any prior case is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed, whereas confirmation would follow if his clean antecedent is verified. The petitioner was directed to deposit Rs.1500 with the High Court Legal Services Committee within two weeks.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioner is entitled to anticipatory bail under Section 482(2) of the BNSS in view of the alleged liquor seizure.
- Whether the absence of the petitioner’s name in the FIR and his claim of clean antecedent justify the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Narcotic Substances Act — s. 111, 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- liquor seizure
- clean antecedent
- Section 111
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 482(2)
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.5739 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-617 Year-2025 Thana- BHAGWAN BAZAR District- Saran
======================================================
Punit Rai @ Shubham Kumar Son of Umashankar Ray Resident of Village-
Ratanpur Near Hanuman Mandir, P.S.- Bhagwan Bazar, District- Saran at
Chapra
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Avinash Kumar Pandey, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Md. Anzarul Haque Sahara, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 03-02-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Section 111 of BNS
read with Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 43.2 liters of liquor from a motorcycle.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner was not apprehended from the spot as such nothing
was recovered from his conscious possession and is not the
owner of the seized vehicle and he came to be implicated at the
instance of local person, but then the name of the person who
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disclosed the name of the petitioner is not disclosed in the FIR
which casts an aspersion on the case of the prosecution, when
petitioner admittedly is a person with clean antecedent.
5. Learned A.P.P. for the State opposes the prayer for
anticipatory bail of the petitioner.
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 Trial Court
within a period of six weeks from today, be released on
Provisional anticipatory bail on furnishing bail bonds 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 Bhagwan
Bazar P.S. Case No. 617 of 2025 subject to the conditions as
laid down under Section 482 (2) of the BNSS.
7. It is made clear that thereafter the learned Trial
Court 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 seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed his
antecedent before this Court, as such, the provisional
anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed, but after
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verification if it is found that petitioner is a person with clean
antecedent in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order
shall be confirmed forthwith.
8. At this stage, the learned counsel for the petitioner,
based on instruction, undertakes to deposit an amount of Rs.
1500/- with the High Court Legal Services Committee, Patna
within a period of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Rishabh/-
U T
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