Patna High Court
Sabita DeviversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail to the petitioners, subject to verification of their criminal antecedents.
Summary
Sabita Devi and Indal Manjhi applied for anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act, where police recovered 20 litres of liquor from their house and 8 litres from a co‑accused. They argued they have clean antecedents, the liquor was in a joint family property and they had no conscious possession, and that the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act abolished the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs. 500 with two sureties and directed verification of the petitioners' criminal antecedents. If any antecedent is found, the bail would be withdrawn for that petitioner; otherwise, the provisional order would be confirmed. The order was made under Section 482(2) of the BNSS.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted to the petitioners under Section 482(2) of the BNSS in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the amendment to the Bihar Excise Act in 2018 eliminates the doctrine of deemed possession, affecting the basis for the charge.
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- deemed possession
- joint family property
- criminal antecedent
- Section 482(2) BNSS
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.78137 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-948 Year-2022 Thana- MANER District- Patna
======================================================
1. Sabita Devi W/O Indal Manjhi Resident Of Village - Tilhari Mushahari, P.S-
Maner, Dist.- Patna
2. Indal Manjhi S/O Vijay Manjhi Resident Of Village - Tilhari Mushahari, P.S-
Maner, Dist.- Patna
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Arvind Prasad Singh
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Mohammed Arif
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 27-04-2026 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 Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the
petitioners are person with clean antecedent and petitioner no. 1
is a woman and allegation is of recovery of 20 litres of liquor
from the house of the petitioners and 8 litres of liquor from the
house of Munna.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the
petitioners were not arrested from the spot as such nothing was
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.78137 of 2025(3) dt.27-04-2026
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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 petitioners who had kept the liquor in
the house or the liquor kept in the house was within knowledge
of the petitioners. It is next submitted that 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 based on secret information which is
the easiest way to implicate someone 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 within a period of six weeks
from today, be released on provisional anticipatory bail on
furnishing bail bonds of Rs. 500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) 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 Maner P.S. Case No. 948 of 2022, subject to
the conditions as laid down under Section Section 482(2) of the
BNSS.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.78137 of 2025(3) dt.27-04-2026
3/3
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 petitioners have 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 with respect to that petitioner who had concealed his
criminal antecedent before this Court, but after verification if it is
found that petitioners are person with clean antecedent in that
event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed
forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sumit/-
U T
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