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Upendar v. The State of Bihar through Principal Secretary

Patna HC29 Jun 2026CWJC/6498/2026

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Bihar excise vehicle release writ; direct petition to High Court for release of vehicle containing liquor; Rule 12A Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules 2021; writ held not fit to be entertained; statutory forum for vehicle release; tractor-trolley with paddy thresher given on rent; petitioner's innocence claim not adjudicated; 30-day filing and 30-day disposal directions; competent authority; respondents DM/SP/SHO Gopalganj; Patna High Court CWJC No.6498 of 2026; Rajeev Ranjan Prasad J; Kumar Manish J; disposed 29-06-2026.

What did the court decide?

No substantive relief granted; the petitioner was advised to seek release of the vehicle before the competent authority under Rule 12A of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021, with a 30-day window for filing and a further 30-day period for disposal. ¶20

Upendar Vs The State of Bihar through Principal Secretary — Patna HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether the writ application seeking direct release of the vehicle should be entertained by this Court when a statutory forum for vehicle release already exists under Rule 12A of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021. +1 more

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Court's answer

The writ application is not fit to be entertained; the petitioner may, if so advised, seek his remedy for release of the vehicle before the competent authority in terms of Rule 12A of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021.

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Ratio / Principle

This Court cannot go into counsel's ex-parte statements of innocence and rental of the tractor-trolley; the present matter concerns release of the vehicle, for which a statutory forum is already available.

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Key takeaways

If the release application is filed within 30 days, the competent authority or the officer authorised by him shall consider it and pass an appropriate order keeping in view the guidelines provided under the Rules.ratio¶19
The release application shall be disposed of within a further period of 30 days from the date of its filing.ratio¶19

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Patna High Court, Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.6498 of 2026, decided 29-06-2026 (Coram: Rajeev Ranjan Prasad and Kumar Manish, JJ; order per Rajeev Ranjan Prasad, J). Petitioner Upendar sought direct relief from the High Court for release of his vehicle - a tractor with trolley fitted with a paddy thresher, which counsel stated had been given on rent and contained liquor of which the petitioner claimed no knowledge. The Court held the writ application not fit to be entertained, observing that a statutory forum for vehicle release already exists under Rule 12A of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021 (as amended up to date), and that it cannot go into such ex-parte statements. The Court directed that if an application for release is filed within 30 days, the competent authority or the officer authorised by him shall consider it and dispose of it within a further 30 days, keeping in view the guidelines under the Rules. Writ disposed of accordingly.

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.6498 of 2026

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Upendar S/o - Vishwanath Chauhan, Vill - Vedupar (Nawka Tola), P.S. - Tataiya Sujan, Dist. - Kushi Nagar.

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... ... Petitioner/s

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Versus

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The State of Bihar through Principal Secretary, Excise Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.

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The District Magistrate, Gopalganj.

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The Superintendent of Police, Gopalganj.

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The Station House Officer, Phulwariya, Distt. - Gopalganj.

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... ... Respondent/s

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====================================================== Appearance : For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Sushil Kumar, Advocate For the State : Mr. Vivek Prasad (GP-7) Ms. Roona (AC to GP-7)

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====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJEEV RANJAN PRASAD and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE KUMAR MANISH ORAL ORDER

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(Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJEEV RANJAN PRASAD)

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2 29-06-2026 It appears that the petitioner has directly moved before this Court for release of the vehicle in question.

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The writ application is not fit to be entertained, however, we observe that the petitioner may, if so advised, seek his remedy for release of the vehicle in question before the competent authority in terms of Rule 12A of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Rules, 2021 (as amended up to date).

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Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is innocent and he had no information of the liquor kept in the vehicle. He had given his tractor with trolley fitted

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Patna High Court CWJC No.6498 of 2026(2) dt.29-06-2026 2/2

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with a paddy thresher on rent. This Court cannot go into such ex-parte statements. Presently the matter relates to release of the vehicle and for that a statutory forum is already available.

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If such an application is filed for release within a period of 30 days from today, the component authority or the officer authorized by him shall consider the same and pass an appropriate order thereon keeping in view the guidelines already provided under the Rules. The application shall be disposed of within a further period of 30 days from the date of filing of the application.

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