Gaya, June 10: A betel shop was found running inside the Gaya Central Jail during raids conducted today on the direction of Gaya district magistrate Sanjay Kumar Agarwal.

Seven different teams under the leadership of Gaya senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manu Maharaaj, city superintendent of police Rakesh Kumar conducted the raids today. Each team comprised a deputy superintendent of police (DSP), an inspector, two station house officers (SHOs) and 30 constables.

During raids, dozen cellphones, chargers, ear phones, Naxalite literature, marijuana cases were recovered.

Confirming that the shop was running inside the jail, the DM said: "A showcause has been served to the jail authorities, including the jail superintendent. A clarification has been sought from the jail authorities that under what circumstances the betel shop was running inside the prison."

A copy of the report about seizure inside the jail will also be sent to the jail inspector-general (IG).

"Raids will be conducted at regular intervals inside the jail till the Assembly elections are over, as there are several Maoists besides, notorious criminals, languishing there," Agarwal said.

The SSP said the person nabbed by the police team confessed to have been running the betel shop for the past one year. He organised everything on a table used in preparing a betel leaf ready for chewing.

"The Gaya police are very serious about the security inside the jail and I will review the security at regular intervals. An FIR has been lodged with Rampur police station in connection with today's raids and the subsequent recovery," the SSP said.

It is for the first time in the last two decades across Bihar that a betel shop was found inside a jail. Guthka, cellphones, chargers and other items have been recovered on several occasions during raids in the jails.

It is evident that people residing in Mithila region (northern part of the state) are very fond of chewing betel leaf.

In Magadh, too, people are very fond of chewing betel that is known as magahi paan in common parlance. Betel farming is also done in different parts of Gaya like Guraru and Wazirganj from where the Magahi betel leaf is supplied to different parts of the country, including Varanasi.