Patna High Court
Tusi DeviversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The Court granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedent and compliance with the stipulated conditions.
Summary
The petitioner, Tusi Devi, sought anticipatory bail after being implicated in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act for alleged recovery of liquor from her residence and from another individual. She argued that she had no conscious possession, the property was jointly owned, and that the 2018 amendment to the Excise Act had abolished the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender. The State opposed the bail, contending that the allegations warranted detention. The Court, considering the submissions, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on the petitioner furnishing a bail bond and sureties, and directed the trial court to verify her criminal antecedent. It further stipulated that if any antecedent is discovered, the bail would not be confirmed, whereas a clean record would lead to immediate confirmation of the bail.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Excise Act where alleged possession is disputed
- Whether the 2018 amendment to the Bihar Excise Act eliminates the doctrine of deemed possession and presumed offender for bail considerations
Legislation cited
- Bihar Negotiable Securities Act — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- Bihar Excise Act
- Section 30(a)
- deemed possession
- presumed offender
- joint family property
- bail conditions
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.90839 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-157 Year-2025 Thana- KHUDAGANJ District- Nalanda
======================================================
Tusi Devi W/O Sunil Chaudhary R/O Village- Daura, Police Station-
Khodaganj, District- Nalanda
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Anil Kumar Singh, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Chandra Bhushan Prasad, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 12-01-2026 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and
learned A.P.P. for the State.
2. The petitioner apprehends her arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Section 30(a) of the
Bihar Excise Act.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and is a woman and
allegation is of recovery of 8 liters of liquor from house of the
petitioner and 2 liters of liquor from possession of Dharmendra
Chaudhary.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner was not apprehended from the spot as such nothing
was recovered from her conscious possession and the house in
question is a joint family property, as such, it cannot be alleged
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.90839 of 2025(2) dt.12-01-2026
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with certainty that it was petitioner who had kept the liquor in
the house or the liquor kept in the house was within her
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. It is next submitted that she 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 petitioner.
6. Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner above-named, in the
event of her 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.
10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand) 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
Khudaganj P.S. Case No. 157 of 2025 subject to the 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 petitioner and
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.90839 of 2025(2) dt.12-01-2026
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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 seeking anticipatory bail, had concealed her
antecedent before this Court, as such, the provisional
anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed, but after
verification if 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)
Rishabh/-
U T
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