MP HC Rejects Anticipatory Bail Plea In 63-Bulk-Litre Liquor Case, Citing MP Excise Act Bar

The applicant sought anticipatory bail under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, in connection with Crime No. 243/2026, registered for an offence under Section 34(2) of the Madhya Pradesh Excise Act.

The prosecution alleged that 63 bulk litres of illicit liquor had been seized from co-accused persons.

The applicant submitted that he was implicated only on the basis of a co-accused’s memorandum, had no criminal antecedents, and was about 20 years old; the State relied on that memorandum and call-detail records indicating contact between the applicant and the co-accused.

Section 59-A(i) of the Madhya Pradesh Excise Act bars courts from entertaining an anticipatory-bail application where a person who does not hold a licence is accused of an offence covered by Section 34(1)(a) or (b), and the quantity of liquor found during detection exceeds 50 bulk litres.

The Court also relied on *Srikant Upadhyay v. State of Bihar*, (2024) 12 SCC 382, for the principle that anticipatory bail is not a rule and must be granted cautiously and judiciously, and on *Tusharbhai Rajnikantbhai Shah v. Kamal Dayani*, (2025) 1 SCC 753, for the principle that the power should not be exercised routinely and requires circumspection.

The Court treated the alleged seizure of 63 bulk litres as exceeding the 50-litre threshold in Section 59-A(i), and held that the statutory provision barred it from entertaining anticipatory bail in the circumstances of the case.

Although the parties disputed the applicant’s connection to the liquor—relying respectively on the co-accused’s memorandum and call-detail records—the Court did not assess those matters on their merits, observing that the merits were not required to be examined at the bail stage.

It declined to grant anticipatory bail and dismissed the application.