Patna High Court
Abhishek KumarversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
Provisional anticipatory bail is granted, subject to verification of the petitioners' disclosed criminal antecedents and compliance with the conditions imposed under Section 482(2).
Summary
The petitioners, Abhishek Kumar and Ankit Kumar, applied for anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case under Sections 274 and 275 of the Bihar Narcotic Substances Act, 2023 and Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022, relating to alleged recovery of 1,840 litres of liquor. They argued that the liquor was not in their conscious possession, they were not owners of the seized vehicle, and that prior excise cases were being used mechanically to implicate them. The State opposed the bail. The High Court, after hearing both sides, granted provisional anticipatory bail conditioned on the petitioners furnishing bail bonds of Rs.20,000 each with two sureties, and directed verification of their criminal antecedents. The court stipulated that if verification shows more cases than disclosed, the bail would not be confirmed; otherwise, the provisional bail would be confirmed. The application for anticipatory bail was therefore allowed subject to these conditions.
Issues considered
- Whether the petitioners are entitled to anticipatory bail under the circumstances alleged.
- Whether the prior criminal antecedents disclosed by the petitioners affect the grant of anticipatory bail.
- Whether the conditions imposed under Section 482(2) of the Bihar Narcotic Substances Act are appropriate.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Narcotic Substances Act — s. 274, 275
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- criminal antecedents
- Section 482
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.91156 of 2025
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-1004 Year-2025 Thana- MAHUA District- Vaishali
======================================================
1. Abhishek Kumar S/O Pawan Rai Resident of Village - Litiyahi, Police
Station- Ganga bridge,Dist- Vaishali
2. Ankit Kumar S/O Nawal Rai Resident of Village - Litiyahi, Police Station-
Ganga bridge,Dist- Vaishali
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms. Sweety Sinha, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Lakshmi Kant Sharma, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 12-01-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned
APP for the State.
2. Petitioners apprehend their arrest in a case
registered for the offences punishable under Sections 274 and
275 of B.N.S., 2023 as well as Section 30(a) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that
petitioner no.1 has antecedents of four cases out of which three
cases are under the Excise Act and petitioner no.2 has
antecedents of two cases under the Excise Act and allegation is
of recovery of 1840 litres of liquor from a pickup vehicle. It is
next submitted that petitioners were not arrested from the spot,
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.91156 of 2025(2) dt.12-01-2026
2/3
as such, nothing was recovered from their conscious possession
and are not the owner of the seized vehicle. It is further
submitted that once an accused is implicated in a case relating to
excise, the police starts implicating mechanically without
holding a proper investigation either at the instance of
Chowkidar, local person, confessional statement or secret
information and at times the antecedent itself becomes a ground
for implication.
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.20,000/- (Rupees Twenty Thousand) each with
two sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of
learned Special Judge Exclusive Prohibition and Excise Court-
II-cum-District and Additional Sessions Judge, Hajipur, Vaishali
in connection with Mahua P.S. Case No.1004 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.91156 of 2025(2) dt.12-01-2026
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 petitioner no.1 has antecedents of more than
four cases and petitioner no.2 has antecedents of more than two
cases, then it would be presumed that petitioners for the
purposes of obtaining anticipatory bail had concealed their
antecedents 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 no.1 has antecedents of
only four cases and petitioner no.2 has antecedents of only two
cases, in that event, the provisional anticipatory bail order shall
be confirmed forthwith.
(Satyavrat Verma, J)
Sanjay/-
U T
Checking your session…