Patna High Court
Amarjeet SahniversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- DISPOSED
- Bench
- SATYAVRAT VERMA
Holding
The court held that provisional anticipatory bail should be granted subject to verification of the petitioner’s antecedent and compliance with the conditions of Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.
Summary
The petitioner, Amarjeet Sahni, sought anticipatory bail in a case registered under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022, alleging recovery of 168.4 litres of liquor from his residence, which is a joint family property. He argued that he had no prior criminal record, the liquor was not found in his conscious possession, and the concept of deemed possession had been abolished by the 2018 amendment. The State opposed the bail, contending that the allegations warranted arrest. The High Court, after hearing both sides, granted provisional anticipatory bail subject to a bail bond of Rs.500 with two sureties and conditions under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S., directing the trial court to verify the petitioner’s antecedent. The order stipulated that if any prior case is discovered, the bail would be revoked; otherwise, it would be confirmed. The application was allowed.
Issues considered
- Whether anticipatory bail can be granted in a case under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022 where alleged possession is not proven.
- Whether the abolition of the deemed possession concept affects the bail decision.
- Whether the conditions under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S. are satisfied for granting provisional anticipatory bail.
Legislation cited
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022 — s. 30(a)
- B.N.S.S. — s. 482(2)
Subjects
- anticipatory bail
- excise law
- possession of liquor
- Section 30(a)
- Section 482(2)
- Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act
- clean antecedent
- provisional bail
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.9519 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-147 Year-2025 Thana- ANGARGHAT District- Samastipur
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Amarjeet Sahni Son of Shambhu Sahani Resident of Ward no. 06, Chaita
Uttari, Chaita, Chaita Utari, P.S. - Angharghat, Dist. - Samastipur, Bihar.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Keshav Bhardwaj, Advocate
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Tarkeshwar Nath Thakur, APP
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA
ORAL ORDER
2 23-02-2026 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 30(a) of Bihar
Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner is a person with clean antecedent and allegation is of
recovery of 168.4 litres of liquor 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
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
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.9519 of 2026(2) dt.23-02-2026
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the year 2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed
offender has been done away with and he 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.500/- (Rupees Five Hundred) with two sureties of the
like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Exclusive Special
Judge Excise-I, Samastipur in connection with Angharghat P.S.
Case No.147 of 2025, 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
found that petitioner has antecedent of even one case, then it
would be presumed that petitioner for the purposes of obtaining
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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)
Sanjay/-
U T
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