Patna High Court
Jitendra Kumar Das @ Jitendra Kuar Das @ Jitendra KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The anticipatory bail application is allowed, granting provisional bail subject to conditions and verification of the petitioner’s antecedent.
Summary
The petitioner, Jitendra Kumar Das, applied for anticipatory bail under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C. in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act for alleged recovery of 114.120 litres of liquor from his joint family house. The petitioner asserted a clean antecedent, no arrest, and that the liquor was not in his conscious possession, further contending that the amendment to the Excise Act in 2018 abolished the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The prosecution opposed the bail, but the court noted the lack of a named informant in the FIR and the absence of evidence linking the petitioner directly to the liquor. Considering these factors, the court directed provisional anticipatory bail upon furnishing bail bonds and sureties, subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedent. The order stipulated that if any prior case is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, it would be confirmed forthwith.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail should be granted to the petitioner under Section 438(2) Cr.P.C. in view of the alleged offence under Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
- Whether the amendment to the Excise Act, 2018, eliminating deemed possession and presumed offender, affects the prosecution's case.
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — s. 438(2)
- Excise Act — s. 30(a)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Section 438 CrPC
- Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- clean antecedent
- joint family property
- deemed possession
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.83605 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-296 Year-2025 Thana- Excise P.S. District- Samastipur
======================================================
Jitendra Kumar Das @ Jitendra Kuar Das @ Jitendra Kumar S/O Muneshwar
Das R/O Village- Korbadha Ward No. 36, P.S.- Mufffasil, District- Samastipur
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Shashank Shekhar
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Pradeep Narain Kumar
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 19-01-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned APP for the State.
2. The petitioner seeks bail in anticipation of his
arrest in a case registered for the offences punishable under
Section 30(a) of the Excise Act.
3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
the petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is
of recovery of 114.120 litres of liquor from the house of the
petitioner.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was
recovered from his conscious possession and even the house in
question is a joint family property and thus, it cannot be alleged
with certainty that it was the petitioner, who had kept the liquor
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.83605 of 2025(3) dt.19-01-2026
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in the house or the liquor kept in the house was within his
knowledge and after Amendment in the Excise Act, 2018, the
concept of deemed possession and presumed offender has been
done away with and he came to be implicated at the instance of
local person, but the name of the person, who disclosed the
name of the petitioner is not disclosed in the F.I.R., which casts
an aspersion on the case of the prosecution, when admittedly
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent.
5. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
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 Court below
within a period of six weeks, is directed to be released on
provisional anticipatory bail on his furnishing bail-bonds in the
sum 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
Excise P. S. Case No.296 of 2025, subject to the conditions laid
down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C.
7. The application stands allowed.
8. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.83605 of 2025(3) dt.19-01-2026
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accepting the provisional bail bonds of the petitioner 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 obtaining
anticipatory bail had concealed his 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
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent, in that event, the
provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
vikash/-
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