Manisha Devi v. The State Of Bihar
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.4940 of 2026 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-269 Year-2025 Thana- DARBHANGA SADAR DistrictDarbhanga ====================================================== 1.
Manisha Devi W/o Mukesh Kumar Resident of Village - Dhoi, Navtoli, P.S.- Sadar, District - Darbhanga 2.
Laxman Paswan S/o Uma Shankar Paswan @ Uma Paswan Resident of Village - Dhoi, Navtoli, P.S.- Sadar, District - Darbhanga ... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar ... ... Opposite Party/s ====================================================== Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s :
Mr.Saurav Anand, Advocate For the Opposite Party/s :
Mr.Anish Chandra, APP ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DR. ANSHUMAN ORAL ORDER 04-02-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned APP for the State.
2. The petitioners who apprehend arrest in connection with Sadar P.S. Case No. 269 of 2025 lodged on 18.08.2025, for the offences punishable under sections 80, 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Section 3⁄4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act.
3. As per the prosecution, the F.I.R. has been lodged against five named accused persons, including the petitioners. It is alleged in the F.I.R. that all the accused persons, including the petitioners, in connivance with each other, killed the daughter of the informant on account of non-fulfillment of dowry demand.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4940 of 2026(2) dt.04-02-2026 2/3
4. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the petitioners are innocent and have committed no offence. It is further submitted that the mother-in-law, father-in-law, and husband of the deceased have already been arrested. Learned counsel submits that, in fact, the deceased was pregnant and during the course of pregnancy she fell ill and was admitted to a private hospital, where she died during treatment. It is further submitted that as per the post-mortem report, the cause of death has been preserved pending the report of the chemical examiner and only bruise injuries were found on the person of the deceased on non-vital parts, which were superficial in nature. It is contended that due to severe anaemia during advanced pregnancy of about nine months and the intra-uterine death of the foetus, the deceased collapsed and subsequently died.
5. Learned counsel further submits that petitioner no. 1, who is the sister-in-law, and petitioner no. 2, who is the brother-in-law of the deceased, have been falsely implicated in the present case with ulterior motive. Although the antecedents of the petitioners are not clean, as they are accused in one other criminal case, the same pertains to a different and unrelated nature.
6. Learned APP for the State opposes the prayer for
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.4940 of 2026(2) dt.04-02-2026 3/3 bail and submits that, as stated by the petitioners themselves, the father-in-law, mother-in-law, and husband of the deceased have already been arrested in connection with the present case.
7. In the facts and circumstances of the case, let the above-named petitioners be released on bail, in the event of their arrest or surrender before the Trial Court within a period of four weeks from today, on furnishing bail bond of 30,000/- ₹ (Rupees Thirty Thousand only) each, as mentioned in Section 2(1)(d) of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, to the satisfaction of the CJM, Darbhanga, in connection with the aforementioned case, subject to the conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
(Dr. Anshuman, J) Ashwini/- U T