Patna High Court
Gautam Kumar @ Gautam @ RajaversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to conditions and verification of criminal antecedents.
Summary
The petitioners, Gautam Kumar and Anil Kumar Singh, sought anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022 (Amended), where 108.75 litres of liquor was recovered from a joint family house and 1.8 litres from a bush. They argued that the liquor was not in their conscious possession, the house being joint family property, and that the amendment of 2018 had abolished the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the bail, contending that the petitioners were implicated in the offence. The High Court, after considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail on the condition of furnishing bail bonds and sureties, and directed the trial court to verify the petitioners' criminal antecedents before confirming the bail. The order stipulated that if petitioner No.1 had more than two prior cases, or any antecedent was concealed, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, it would be confirmed.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioners are entitled to anticipatory bail under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022 (Amended).
- Whether the recovery of liquor from a joint family house establishes possession or knowledge on the part of the petitioners.
- Whether the amendment removing deemed possession and presumed offender concepts affects the bail application.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise offence
- possession
- joint family property
- Section 30(a)
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- Section 482
- criminal antecedent
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.66746 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-330 Year-2025 Thana- PAROO District- Muzaffarpur
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1. Gautam Kumar @ Gautam @ Raja S/o Anil Kumar Singh @ Anil Singh R/o
Village - Fuladh, P.O - Fuladh, P.S - Paru, District - Muzaffarpur
2. Anil Kumar Singh @ Anil Singh S/o Late Chandeshwar Prasad Singh R/o
Village - Fuladh, P.O - Fuladh, P.S - Paru, District - Muzaffarpur
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Dhananjay Kumar Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Pronoti Singh, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 07-01-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioners apprehend their arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Section 30(a) of the
Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2022 (Amended).
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioner no. 1 has antecedent of two cases under the excise act
and petitioner no. 2 is a person with clean antecedent and
allegation is of recovery of 108.750 liters of liquor from house
of petitioner no. 1 and 1.8 liters of liquor from a bush.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioners were not apprehended from the spot as such nothing
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.66746 of 2025(3) dt.07-01-2026
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was recovered from their conscious possession and the house in
question is a joint family property, as such, it cannot be alleged
with certainty that it was petitioner no. 1 who had kept the
liquor in the house or the liquor kept in the house was within his
knowledge and after amendment in the excise act in the year
2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender
has been done away with and they came to be implicated at the
instance of Chowkidar, but then it is submitted that if
Chowkidar was aware of the involvement of the petitioners in
the occurrence then why he did not inform the police prior to
institution of the instant FIR which casts an aspersion on the
case of the prosecution. It is also 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 petitioners.
6. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioners, the petitioners above-named, in the
event of their arrest or surrender before the learned Trial Court
within a period of six weeks from today, be released on
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.66746 of 2025(3) dt.07-01-2026
3/3
Provisional anticipatory bail on furnishing bail bonds of Rs.
10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand) each 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
Paroo P.S. Case No. 330 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 petitioners and
in the event if it is found that petitioner no. 1 has antecedent of
more than two cases and petitioner no. 1 has antecedent of even
one case then it would be presumed that petitioners, for the
purposes of seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed their
antecedent before this Court, as such, the provisional
anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed, but after
verification if it is found that petitioner no. 1 has antecedent of
two cases only and petitioner no. 2 is a person with clean
antecedent, in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order
shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Rishabh/-
U T
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