Patna High Court
Mahendra ChaudharyversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court held that provisional anticipatory bail may be granted subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedents and compliance with conditions under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
Summary
The petitioner, Mahendra Chaudhary, applied for anticipatory bail in a case under Section 47(a)(f) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act alleging possession of 40 litres of liquor and 400 kg of fermented Jawa Mahua. He argued that the liquor was recovered from a joint family house, not from his immediate possession, and that the amended Excise Act had done away with the concepts of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the bail, contending that the allegations warranted arrest. The High Court, considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on a bail bond of Rs.10,000 with two sureties and subject to verification of the petitioner’s criminal antecedents. The court directed that if more than two prior cases are found, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, it would be confirmed forthwith.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 47(a)(f) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act where the alleged possession is in a joint family house.
- Whether the amendment to the Excise Act eliminating deemed possession and presumed offender affects the bail application.
- Whether the petitioner’s prior criminal antecedents justify denial of anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- deemed possession
- presumed offender
- joint family property
- Section 47
- Section 482
- Bihar
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.85248 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-90 Year-2015 Thana- GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL COMP.
District- Nawada
======================================================
Mahendra Chaudhary Son of Pyare Chaudhary Resident of Village -
Chamotha, P.S. - Sirdalla, District - Nawada.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Sheo Nandan Prasad, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Upendra Kumar, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 20-01-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case registered
for the offence punishable under Section 47(a)(f) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has antecedents of two cases under the Excise Act and
allegation is of recovery of 40 litres of liquor along with 400
Kgs. of fermented Jawa Mahua from house of the petitioner. It
is next submitted that petitioner was not arrested from the spot,
as such, nothing was recovered from his conscious possession
and the house in question is a joint family property, as such, it
cannot be alleged with certainty that it was petitioner who had
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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 petitioner came to be
implicated based on secret information, which is the easiest way
to implicate someone without holding a proper investigation.
4. Learned A.P.P. opposes the anticipatory bail
application.
5. 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-bond in the
sum of Rs.10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand) with two sureties of
the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive
Special Excise Court-2, Nawada in connection with G.O. Case
No.90 of 2015, subject to the conditions laid down under
Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
6. The application stands allowed.
7. It is made clear that the learned trial Court after
accepting the provisional bail bond of the petitioner shall verify
the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and in the event, if it is
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found that petitioner has antecedents of more than two cases,
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 has antecedents of only two cases, in that event,
the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed
forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
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