Patna High Court
Shankar Rai @ Shiv Shankar RaiversusThe 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 antecedents.
Summary
Shankar Rai sought anticipatory bail after the police registered a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act alleging that 44.55 litres of liquor were recovered from his cowshed. The petitioner contended that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, the cowshed was accessible to villagers, and that the evidence might have been planted by an inimical person. He argued that the police had mechanically relied on local informants without conducting a proper investigation. The State opposed the bail application. The High Court, considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.15,000 with two sureties and a condition that the petitioner deposit Rs.5,000 with the Lawyers’ Association, while directing the trial court to verify his criminal antecedents before confirming the bail.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioner is entitled to anticipatory bail in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the circumstances of alleged recovery of liquor from the cowshed justify denial of bail.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior criminal antecedents affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Negotiable Securities Act (BNSS) — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- Section 30
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 482
- provisional bail
- criminal antecedent
- evidence planting
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.5987 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-402 Year-2025 Thana- DIDARGANJ District- Patna
======================================================
Shankar Rai @ Shiv Shankar Rai S/O Munarik Rai R/O vill - Didarganj, Po -
Katra Bazar Samiti, Simli Murarpur, P.S- - Didarganj,Dist- Patna
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Sudish Kumar
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Rajendra Singh
======================================================
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 30(a) of the
Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner has antecedent of three cases out of which two cases
are under the Excise Act and allegation is of recovery of 44.55
litres of liquor from the cowshed of the petitioner.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner was not arrested from the spot as such nothing was
recovered from his conscious possession and the cowshed is a
place outside the house thus is accessible to villagers at large. It
is next submitted that no prudent person would use his own
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.5987 of 2026(2) dt.03-02-2026
2/3
premises for committing an occurrence and thus would create
evidence against himself and hence would get implicated. It is
next submitted that it appears that someone inimical to the
petitioner planted meagre amount of liquor in order to implicate
the entire family members and he came to be implicated at the
instance of local people, but then it is submitted that once an
accused is implicated in a case relating to excise, the police
starts implicating mechanically either at the instance of
Chowkidar, local person, confessional statement or secret
information without holding a proper investigation.
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. 15,000/- (Rupees
Fifteen Thousand) 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 Didarganj P.S. Case
No. 402 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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.5987 of 2026(2) dt.03-02-2026
3/3
shall verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the
event if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of more than
three cases 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 verification if it is found that
petitioner has antecedent of three cases 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 submits that petitioner undertakes to deposit
an amount of Rs. 5,000/- with Lawyers’ Association, Patna High
Court within a period of two weeks from today.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-
U T
Checking your session…