Satendra Mahto v. The State Of Bihar
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.84233 of 2023 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-291 Year-2023 Thana- SIDHWALIYA District- Gopalganj ====================================================== 1.
Satendra Mahto Son Of Prabhu Mahto R/O Bhakri Chowk, Salempur, P.S.- Sidhwaliya, Dist.- Gopalganj 2.
Rajan Sahani @ Rajan Sharma @ Rajan Kumar Son Of Shankar Sahani R/O Salempur, P.S.- Sidhwaliya, Dist.- Gopalganj ... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar.
... ... Opposite Party/s ====================================================== Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s :
Mr. Devashish Giri, Advocate.
For the Opposite Party/s :
Mr. Dinesh Singh, A.P.P.
====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE CHANDRA PRAKASH SINGH ORAL ORDER 22-01-2024 Learned counsel for the petitioners is permitted to remove the defect(s), as pointed out by the office, if any, within a period of three weeks from today.
2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State.
3. The petitioners are apprehending their arrest in connection with Sidhwaliya P.S Case No. 291 of 2023 dated 27.09.2023 for the offences punishable u/s 30(a) of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act.
4. As per the prosecution case, total 27.720 litres of illicit liquor was recovered from the two motorcycles.
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.84233 of 2023(2) dt.22-01-2024 2/3
5. Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that the petitioners have falsely been implicated in this case. It is further submitted that the petitioners are neither the owner nor the driver of the said vehicles. The co-accused has already granted anticipatory bail by the Coordinate Bench of this court vide order dated 08.01.2024 passed in Cr. Misc. No. 82990 of 2023. The petitioners have no criminal antecedent as stated at para 3 of the bail petition. No incriminating article has been recovered from the conscious possession of the petitioners, hence no case is made out. Learned Counsel has relied on the judgment of Full Bench of Hon'ble Patna High Court in the case of Ram Vinay Yadav vs. State of Bihar reported in 2019 (2) PLJR 1089. The Full Bench in the case of Ram Vinay Yadav (supra) has held that an application for anticipatory bail in a case arising out of Bihar Excise and Prohibition Act can be maintained, despite the bar under Section 76 (2) of the Act, if on the basis of allegation made in the FIR, no offence under the said provision is made out.
6. Learned A.P.P. for the State has vehemently opposed the prayer for anticipatory bail of the petitioners by
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.84233 of 2023(2) dt.22-01-2024 3/3 submitting that the bar of Section 76(2) of the Act applies in this case.
7. Considering the aforesaid facts and circumstances of the case as well as the nature of allegation against the petitioners, let the above named petitioners, in the event of their arrest/surrender within a period of six weeks from today, be enlarged on anticipatory bail on furnishing bail-bond of Rs. 20,000/- (Rupees twenty thousand) with two sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of the learned court concerned, Gopalganj in connection with Sidhwaliya P.S Case No. 291 of 2023, subject to conditions as laid down under section 438(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
(Chandra Prakash Singh, J) Nilmani/- U T