Patna High Court
Dhiraj YadavversusThe STATE of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to verification of the petitioners’ criminal antecedents and compliance with bail bond conditions.
Summary
Petitioners Dhiraj Yadav and Navin Yadav sought anticipatory bail after being implicated in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for allegedly recovering 100 litres of liquor from a public canal area. They argued that the liquor was not in their possession, the informant’s identity was omitted from the FIR, and that police investigations in excise cases are often mechanical. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, considering these submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on the petitioners furnishing bail bonds of Rs.20,000 each with two sureties, and directed the trial court to verify their criminal antecedents. If the antecedents exceed the disclosed numbers, the provisional bail will not be confirmed; otherwise, it will be confirmed forthwith.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioners are entitled to anticipatory bail under Section 482(2) of the BNSS in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act.
- Whether the alleged recovery of liquor from a public place and the omission of the informant’s name in the FIR justify granting bail.
- Whether the petitioners’ prior criminal antecedents affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- liquor recovery
- criminal antecedent
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- provisional bail
- public place
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.88176 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-468 Year-2025 Thana- LAKHISARAI District- Lakhisarai
======================================================
1. Dhiraj Yadav Son of Bhagwan Yadav R/o Village - Pachauta, P.S. and Dist. -
Lakhisarai.
2. Navin Yadav Son of Bhagwan Yadav R/o Village - Pachauta, P.S. and Dist. -
Lakhisarai.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Mayank Bilochan, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Parmanand Prasad, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 05-01-2026 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 Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioner no. 1 has antecedent of one case and petitioner no. 2
has antecedent of four cases and all the cases are under the
excise act. It is next submitted that allegation is of recovery of
100 liters of liquor from a place near a canal.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioners were not apprehended from the spot as such nothing
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.88176 of 2025(2) dt.05-01-2026
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was recovered from their conscious possession and even alleged
recovery is from a place which does not belong to the
petitioners and is accessible to public at large and and they came
to be implicated at the instance of local person, but then the
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. 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
Provisional anticipatory bail on furnishing bail bonds of Rs.
20,000/- (Rupees Twenty 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 Lakhisarai P.S. Case No. 468 of 2025 subject to the
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.88176 of 2025(2) dt.05-01-2026
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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 one and petitioner no. 2 has antecedent of more than
four cases 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
one case only and petitioner no. 2 has antecedent of four cases
only, in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be
confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Rishabh/-
U T
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