The Patna High Court has set aside orders rejecting an arms licence application after finding that the refusal was substantially based on a criminal case in which the applicant had subsequently been acquitted.
Justice Alok Kumar delivered the oral judgment on September 23, 2026, in Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 14364 of 2024. The Court also directed the District Magistrate, Patna, to reconsider the application on the basis of a fresh police report and the petitioner’s circumstances.
Sanjay Kumar Yadav, a builder and Director of Bigrahpuram Developers Pvt. Limited, had applied for an arms licence for an N.P. Bore Revolver/Pistol on January 17, 2023. He stated that his work required him to travel during the day and night and that he apprehended a threat to his life and property. The police enquiry conducted through the Jakkanpur Police Station and the Senior Superintendent of Police, Patna, had recommended grant of the licence.
The District Magistrate, Patna, rejected the application in August 2023, relying on the pendency of Ramkrishna Nagar P.S. Case No. 502/2021, registered under Sections 447, 427, 379, 354, 504, 506 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The petitioner appealed against the rejection before the Divisional Commissioner, Patna, who dismissed the appeal and affirmed the District Magistrate’s order in April 2024.
However, before the Divisional Commissioner passed the appellate order, the petitioner had already been acquitted in the said criminal case by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate-XIII, Patna, on February 23, 2024. The Patna High Court noted that the acquittal had therefore occurred before the appellate authority affirmed the rejection, and found that the criminal case could no longer sustain the impugned orders.
The High Court reiterated that possessing a firearm is not a fundamental right in India and that arms licences are regulated under the Arms Act, 1959. At the same time, the Court noted that licensing authorities must give objective reasons for refusing or cancelling a licence and cannot act on vague allegations or assumptions.
The Court observed:
“Mere involvement or registration of a routine FIR against an applicant or license holder is generally an insufficient ground for outright cancellation or refusal unless active misuse, violence, or a direct threat to public safety is demonstrated.”
Applying these principles, the Court found that the earlier criminal case could no longer sustain the rejection because the petitioner had already been acquitted before the Divisional Commissioner affirmed the District Magistrate’s decision.
The High Court quashed both the District Magistrate’s order dated August 4, 2023, and the Divisional Commissioner’s order dated April 30, 2024. It directed the District Magistrate, Patna, to reconsider Yadav’s arms licence application on the basis of a fresh police report, while taking into account his work as a builder and businessman and his stated requirement for self-protection. The application is to be decided within three months from the filing of a copy of the High Court’s order. The writ petition was accordingly allowed.
Case Title: Sanjay Kumar Yadav v. The State of Bihar & Ors.
Case Number: Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 14364 of 2024
