Patna High Court
Paras ChaudharyversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court allowed the anticipatory bail application, granting provisional anticipatory bail subject to verification of the petitioners' criminal antecedents.
Summary
The petitioners, five residents of Mahadeva village in Rohtas district, applied for anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018/2022 for allegedly possessing 45 litres of liquor and 1,000 litres of Mahua recovered from the banks of the Son River. They contended that none of the liquor was found in their conscious possession, that the recovery site was public and not owned by them, and that the informant’s name was omitted from the FIR, casting doubt on the prosecution’s case. The State opposed the bail, arguing the seriousness of the offence. The High Court, after considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on the petitioners furnishing bail bonds of Rs 5,000 each with two sureties and subject to verification of their criminal antecedents by the Special Excise Judge. The order further stipulated that if the verification revealed undisclosed prior cases, the bail would be revoked; otherwise, the provisional bail would be confirmed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted to the petitioners under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018/2022.
- Whether the lack of possession and the alleged procedural lapses in the FIR justify the grant of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- liquor possession
- Mahua
- criminal antecedent
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.83470 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-349 Year-2025 Thana- NASRIGANJ District- Rohtas
======================================================
1. Paras Chaudhary S/o Ram Govind Chaudhary R/o Village - Mahadeva, P.S -
Nasriganj, District - Rohtas
2. Pintu Paswan S/o Kasim Paswan R/o Village - Mahadeva, P.S - Nasriganj,
District - Rohtas
3. Ramashankar Paswan S/o Ramjee Paswan R/o Village - Mahadeva, P.S -
Nasriganj, District - Rohtas
4. Prince Paswan S/o Balmiki Paswan R/o Village - Mahadeva, P.S - Nasriganj,
District - Rohtas
5. Karmu Paswan S/o Late Mahadeo Paswan R/o Village - Mahadeva, P.S -
Nasriganj, District - Rohtas
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Rajani Kant Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Ramesh Chandra, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 19-01-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioners apprehend their arrest in a case
registered for the offence punishable under Section 30(a) of
Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018/2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioners no.1 to 4 are persons with clean antecedent and
petitioner no.5 has antecedent of one case and allegation is of
recovery of 45 litres of liquor along with 1000 litres of Mahua
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.83470 of 2025(3) dt.19-01-2026
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Paas which was destroyed at the bank of Son river. It is next
submitted that petitioners were not arrested from the spot, as
such, nothing was recovered from their conscious possession
and even alleged recovery is from a place which does not
belong to the petitioners but then is accessible to villagers at
large and they came to be implicated at the instance of local
person but then name of the person, who disclosed the name of
the petitioners, is not disclosed in the FIR, which casts an
aspersion on the case of the prosecution.
4. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
5. 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 Court below
within a period of six weeks, are directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on their furnishing bail-bonds in
the sum of Rs.5,000/- (Rupees Five Thousand) each with two
sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned
Exclusive Special Excise Judge-II, Rohtas at Sasaram in
connection with Nasriganj P.S. Case No.349 of 2025, subject to
the conditions laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. The application stands allowed.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.83470 of 2025(3) dt.19-01-2026
3/3
7. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
accepting the provisional bail bonds of the petitioners shall
verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioners and in the event,
if it is found that petitioners no.1 to 4 have antecedent of even
one case and petitioner no.5 has antecedent of more than one
case, then it would be presumed that petitioners for the purposes
of obtaining anticipatory bail had concealed their 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 petitioners no.1 to 4 are persons
with clean antecedent and petitioner no.5 has antecedent of only
one case, in that event, the provisional anticipatory bail order
shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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