Bhartendu Paswan v. The State Of Bihar

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.20718 of 2026 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-396 Year-2023 Thana- RUNISAIDPUR District- Sitamarhi ====================================================== Bhartendu Paswan S/O Binod Paswan R/O Village- Uttri Ward No. 08, P.SNanpur, Dist.- Sitamarhi. ... ... Petitioner/s

Versus

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

For the Petitioner/s :

Mr. Ayush Kumar For the Opposite Party/s :

Mr. Umanath Mishra ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SATYAVRAT VERMA ORAL ORDER 31-03-2026

1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned A.P.P. for the State.

2. The petitioner apprehends his arrest in a case registered for the offences punishable under Sections 30(A), 32, 36, 41(1) 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 2851.125 litres of liquor from a truck. It is next submitted that petitioner was not arrested from the spot as such nothing was recovered from his conscious possession and is not the owner of the seized vehicle and he came to be implicated based on confessional statement of Hira in police custody which does not have any evidentiary value. It is also submitted that

Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.20718 of 2026(2) dt.31-03-2026 2/3 after amendment in the Excise Act in the year 2018, the concept of deemed possession and presumed offender has been done away with.

4. Learned A.P.P. for the State opposes the prayer for anticipatory bail of the petitioner.

5. Considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner above-named, in the event of his arrest or surrender within a period of six weeks from today, be released on provisional anticipatory bail on furnishing bail bonds of Rs.500/- (Rupees five hundred) 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 Runnisaidpur P.S. Case No.396/2023, subject to the conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the B.N.S.S.

6. It is made clear that the learned trial court thereafter shall verify the criminal antecedents of the petitioner and in the event if it is found that petitioner has antecedent of even one case, in that event, it would be presumed that petitioner had concealed his antecedent before this court, as such, the provisional anticipatory bail order shall not be confirmed but if on verification it is found that petitioner is a person with clean

Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.20718 of 2026(2) dt.31-03-2026 3/3 antecedent, in that event the provisional anticipatory bail order shall be confirmed forthwith.

(Satyavrat Verma, J) amit/- U T