Manju Kunwar @ Manju Kumari v. The State Of Bihar

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.5630 of 2026 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-257 Year-2025 Thana- JANTA BAZAR District- Saran ====================================================== Manju Kunwar @ Manju Kumari Wife of Late Bhagwan Chaudhary R/o Village - Sobhipur, P.S. - Janta Bajar, Dist. - Saran. ... ... Petitioner/s

Versus

The State of Bihar ... ... Opposite Party/s ====================================================== Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s :

Mr. Mrityunjay Kumar Tiwary, Advocate For the Opposite Party/s :

Mr. Mritunjay Kumar Nirala, A.P.P.

====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA ORAL ORDER 03-02-2026

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 offence punishable under Section 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2022.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that petitioner has antecedent of two cases under the Excise Act and is a woman and allegation is of recovery of 25 litres of liquor from the house of the petitioner and 15 litres of liquor from the bush.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that petitioner was not arrested from the spot, as such, nothing was recovered from her conscious possession. It is further submitted that the house in question is a joint family property, as such, it cannot be alleged with certainty that it was the petitioner who

Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.5630 of 2026(2) dt.03-02-2026 2/3 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 petitioner came to be implicated at the instance of the Chawkidar with whom the husband of the petitioner is on an inimical term. It is also submitted that the Chawkidar in order to coerce the husband of the petitioner into submission falsely implicated the petitioner. It is lastly submitted that earlier also petitioner came to be implicated in a similar manner.

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, let 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 Janta Bazar P.S. Case No. 257 of 2025, subject to the conditions as laid down under Section 438(2) of the Cr.P.C./482(2) of the

Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.5630 of 2026(2) dt.03-02-2026 3/3 BNSS.

7. It is made clear that thereafter the learned trial court shall verify the criminal antecedent of the petitioner and if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of more than two cases, it would be presumed that petitioner had concealed her antecedent before this Court at para 3 of the anticipatory bail application in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed but if it is found on verification that petitioner has antecedent of only two cases in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.

8. At this stage, learned counsel for the petitioner based on instruction submits that petitioner undertakes to deposit an amount of Rs.2,500/- with the Advocate Association of the Patna High Court within a period of two weeks from today.

(Satyavrat Verma, J) Kundan/- U T