The Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini () was a Bangladeshi para-military force formed in 1972 by the Sheikh Mujibur Rahman government.
Initially formed to curb the insurgency and maintain law and order the force became involved in numerous charges of human rights abuse including political killings, shooting by death squads, and rape. It was seen as the armed wing of the ruling Awami League and it swore an oath of loyalty to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The Rakkhi Bahini has been condemned by many academics and journalists, including Ghulam Murshid who compared it with the Gestapo, and Anthony Mascarenhas who said that it was a "gang of hoodlums little different from the Nazi Brown shirts." Human Rights Watch states that the institutionalized violence committed by the Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini, established the culture of impunity with which security forces in independent Bangladesh continue to abuse human rights. Pro Awami League commentators dismiss the charges as "myths".
History
Background
After the end of the Bangladesh Liberation War, there was a violent insurgency to replace the elected revolutionary government of the newly independent country with a Marxist communist system of government inspired by Soviet Union and Chinese Communist Party through the uses of private militias formed by left wing army commanders who fought in the war like Colonel Abu Taher and political activists many of whom were members of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal.
During the Liberation War of Bangladesh, numerous civilians joined the war after being trained by the Indian forces. Tajuddin Ahmed felt these people should come under national service as they had arms and training. Tajuddin Ahmed asked Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to form a para-military force for them.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman primarily rejected the proposal but soon realized the necessity of an elite force, because many police officers died in the Bangladesh Liberation War. Whenever rebels attacked them in their office, they were outnumbered. Raw materials, machinery and goods of factories were being smuggled through the border to India which also became a headache for the newly formed government. Considering this situation, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman decided to form this force.
Time remarked after independence that "Many of the more radical young guerrillas who fought with the Mukti Bahini may not be content with the moderate course charted by the middle-aged politicians of the Awami League. Moreover, the present Dacca government is a very remote power in country villages where the local cadres of the Mukti Bahini are highly visible." The article also quoted one of its commanders, Ali Ashraf Chowdhury: "We will never lay down our arms until our social ideals have been realized". he said. The article continues, "So far the Mujib Bahini has done a commendable job of protecting the Biharis, the non-Bengali Moslems who earned Bengali wrath by siding with the Pakistani army. But the government is anxious to disarm the Mujib Bahini, and has plans to organize it into a constabulary that would carry out both police and militia duties."
Masudul Haque in his book Bangladesher Swadhinota Juddho O CIA (Liberation War of Bangladesh and CIA), mentions Abdur Rajjak, a young leader and the chief of Bangladesh Swecchasebok League (Bangladesh Volunteer's League) that Mujib told them not to surrender all the guns.
Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini was actively deployed just after the Indian Army left Bangladesh on 17 March. The force was trained and brought up by Major General Sujan Singh Uban from Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) as per the request of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Moidul Hassan, confirmed this information in the book Muktijuddher Purbapor.
He said,
On the other hand, Brigadier General M. Shakhawat Hossain claimed that an Indian commander named Major Reddy was the all in all of the Savar camp. The post and the activity of that Indian is still a mystery to all who knew it. In Savar camp there was three additional battalions who were called Recruit Battalion. These three battalions were directly supervised by Major Bala Reddy. Anwar-ul-Alam admits that there were many Junior Commissioned Officers of Indian Army were in the training camp of Savar.