The court granted anticipatory bail under Section 438 of CrPC, determining that allegations did not constitute serious offences and indicated a civil nature of dispute.

CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ANIL KUMAR SINHA ORAL ORDER

4 18-12-2025 1. Heard learned Counsel for the petitioner, learned Counsel for the Opposite Party No. 2 and learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State.

2. This application, for grant of anticipatory bail, arises out of Mufassil Police Station Case No. 156 of 2022, dated 17.10.2020, disclosing offences punishable under Sections 420 /406 of the Indian Penal Code .

3. The prosecution case, as per the complaint petition, is that the informant runs a hardware shop and the petitioner took some articles worth Rs. 5,40,000/- from the informant on credit and despite repeated request made by the informant, the petitioner did not pay the amount.

4. Learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner has falsely been implicated in this case due to ulterior motive. There was business transactions between the petitioner and the informant, which gives rise to civil dispute, but this has been given the colour of criminal case. He further submits that the petitioner has taken articles worth Rs. 20,00,000/-, out of which Rs. 5,40,000/- was to be paid by the petitioner to the informant. The petitioner demanded GST bills of the purchase made by him from the informant, but the informant did not provide him the GST bill and in the panchayati, after deducting the GST amount, the petitioner has paid a sum of Rs. 2,51,468/- to the informant and he undertakes to pay the rest amount if the informant provides him the GST bill of the purchase made by him.

5. On the other hand, learned Counsel for the Opposite Party No. 2 opposes the prayer for anticipatory bail.

6. Having heard learned Counsel for the parties concerned and taking into consideration the nature of allegation made in the First Information Report and the fact that no serious allegation is made out against the petitioner and the dispute between the parties relates to business transactions between them, I am inclined to grant the petitioner privilege of anticipatory bail.

7. This application is, accordingly, allowed.

8. Let the petitioner, above named, in the event of his arrest or surrender before the Court below within a period of four weeks from today, be released on bail on furnishing bail bond of Rs. 10,000/- (ten thousand) with two sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, West Champaran, at Bettiah, in connection with Mufassil Police Station Case No. 156 of 2022, subject to the condition laid down under Section

438 (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure , 1973..