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BANGLADESH the BDR MUTINY SANDEEP BHARDWAJ Research Officer, IPCS, New Delhi

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BANGLADESH the BDR MUTINY SANDEEP BHARDWAJ Research Officer, IPCS, New Delhi BANGLADESH THE BDR MUTINY SANDEEP BHARDWAJ Research Officer, IPCS, New Delhi An Overview their families, were at the Pilkhana compound1. On the morning of 25 February 2008 more than one thousand jawans of Bangladesh According to witness reports, the mutiny paramilitary force, Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) began at around 8:30 am in Darbar Hall staged a mutiny at its headquarters in of the HQ. It quickly spread throughout the Dhaka at Pilkhana. For the next 33 hours, compound and gunshots were heard along the mutineers held the BDR HQ, keeping with grenade bursts. It is believed that the several officers and civilians as hostage. mutiny began in the Hall during the Initially confined to Pilkhana, the mutiny address of the BDR Director General Maj later spread to other outposts of BDR. Gen Shakil Ahmed. Within a very short There were reports of disobedience or time, a large number of troops were violence from at least twelve other BDR involved.2 outposts. The killings, however, were confined only to the HQ. By the end of the According to some unconfirmed witness mutiny, 74 people including 56 officers accounts, initially there was little or no had lost their lives. organisation or leadership among the mutineers.3 Nevertheless, it was apparent The mutiny has shocked the entire nation. that mutineers were NCOs and jawans of Not only has the mutiny left a big question the BDR and their targets were mainly their mark on the state of security in Bangladesh. officers. Several officers and their families It is clear that for a long time to come the were rounded up, some from their homes in ghost of the mutiny is going to haunt the residential complex. Bangladesh. By 9:40 am the situation had gone I completely out of control. Mutineers even THE MUTINY: RECONSTRUCTING THE sprayed bullets outside the complex, EVENTS injuring the passers by and killing three.4 The mutineers even fired mortar rounds at The mutiny began at the second day of the the army helicopter hovering over the annual BDR Week celebration. The celebrations had begun on 24 February, 1 Manik, Julfikar Ali and Khan, Sharier, “Mutiny, inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh bloodshed at BDR HQ,” The Daily Star, 26 Hasina at BDR HQ, less than twenty-four February 2009, hours prior to the outbreak of mutiny. http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=77491 Around 150 BDR Officers, including its 2 entire top-brass, was in attendance at the Manik, Julfikar Ali, “How it began,” Daily Star, HQ for the celebrations. In addition, there 26 February 2009, were at least four battalions of BDR- 24, Http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=77496 36, 13 and 44- in the compound, with each 3 “Conversation between PM Sheikh Hasina and battalion consisting of around 850 troops. surviving victims,” uncorroborated and anonymous Additionally there were 3000 more source, http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=- soldiers from other battalions. The 3649058570203302495 estimates have been made of around 4 9000 people, including the troops and Manik, n.2 1 IPCS SPECIAL REPORT No 70, April 2009 compound5. According to witness accounts, credited as the turning point in the killings of officers began soon after. situation. Several officers, including the top hierarchy of BDR, were killed. Some may even have On the second day, the mutiny spread to been tortured; officers were shot, hanged, other parts of the country. There were mutilated or bayoneted. BDR DG Gen reports of disobedience and general Ahmed was shot along with his wife, indiscipline in BDR outposts at Chittagong, although the time of their death is still Rangpur, Chapainawabganj, Satkhira and unconfirmed. Dhaka Sector Commander, Jessore. Several BDR bases reported gun Col Mujibul Haq was killed and his house fire in the air, which led to at least three set on fire.6 It should be noted that despite wounded. Two army officials were taken contrary reports, there was no act of rape hostage in a village in Satkania.7 committed by BDR. However, there were According to Indian Border Security Force, mass graves, with many bodies recovered BDR was not functional at many check posts from the sewage pipes. on the border.8 Several of the highways were barricaded by the troops. According Soon afterwards the compound was to one report, the mutiny spread to at least surrounded by Rapid Action Battalion, local 12 towns and cities across the country.9 police and Bangladesh Army. Mutineers However, there wasn’t any death caused contacted the media and put forward their due to mutiny outside the Pilkhana demands. They also accused BDR officers compound. of corruption, exploitation and treason. By late evening of 26th, a convoy of APCs Within next few hours, there were three and tanks from the Army's 9 Division in attempts by Bangladesh government to Savar and the 46 Brigade in Dhaka negotiate a truce. One was led by a State Cantonment drove down surrounding the Minister and Jatiya Sangsad Whip. compound at Pilkhana. This was the time Another was made when fourteen BDR when mutineers, raising a white flag, members visited PM’s official residence, surrendered. Finally the ordeal was (check, I don’t think they visited the PM) brought to an end after 33 hours. At 7:00 following which, Prime Minister Sheikh pm, Dhaka police commissioner entered the Hasina announced amnesty for the BDR compound. mutineers. At 9:40 pm a team of government negotiators, including the Immediate Aftermath Interior Minister, Sahara Khatun visited the HQ for another round of negotiations. The immediate reaction of public at large After some preliminary negotiations the after the mutiny was one of relief. Clearly, Home Minister entered the compound at this was a possible catastrophic crisis that 12:25 am, 26 February. In subsequent negotiations the Home Minister succeeded 7 in release of 29 hostages. At 2:30 pm, 26 “Calm across country after chaos, revolt,” The February, PM Sheikh Hasina in a televised Daily Star, 27 February 2009, address to the nation, gave a firm line to http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=77644 the mutineers. This calm but strong response 8 “BDR personnel missing from Indo-Bangla border to the mutiny from the PM has been posts,” The Economic Times, 28 Feb 2009 http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Politics Nation/BDR-personnel-missing-from-Indo-Bangla- 5 Ahmed, Inam and Hasan, Rashidul, “Bullets buzz border-posts/articleshow/4204714.cms in the air,” The Daily Star, 26 February 2009, http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=77494 9 Chowdhury, Khaled Iqbal, “BDR Mutiny: Security implications for Bangladesh and the 6 Col Haq’s son confirmed so to a journalist through region,” Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security an SMS during the mutiny, Manik & Khan, n.1 Studies 2 BANGLADESH: THE BDR MUTINY was averted. However, at the compound, a though led by police, involved the army lot of confusion ensued. An undetermined significantly. number of BDR soldiers had escaped during and after the mutiny. It was almost The government also set up a probe on the impossible to hunt them all or identify which matter. However, the probe was ones were involved in the mutiny. Due to reconstituted on 2 March, to exclude Home the lack of preparation of any agency for Minister and State Minister for Law making such a crisis, it took many days for the probe strictly apolitical12. This was authorities to give a credible death toll. probably in response to the first significant Similarly, due to the destruction of records political opposition government faced on by the mutineers, it took the authorities the matter of the mutiny. The government some time to reorganise. It was only two also asked US Federal Bureau of days after the carnage that the army could Investigation and British Scotland Yard to access the databases of BDR. aid in the investigation. As the reports of barbarity of some killing The PM held a meeting with survivors of came out, the country was shocked. The mutiny after the carnage. In this closed death toll of officers was 56, highest in the door meeting surviving BDR officers history of Bangladesh. accused the army and government of late response. They also criticised the Amnesty and Prosecution government’s granting amnesty to the mutineers. Some of the officers viciously True to her word, Sheikh Hasina gave the attacked the government and the army top absconding BDR soldiers 24 hours to return brass of being corrupt and ineffective.13 to their posts. Around 5000 soldiers reported back for duty. There was not The audio recording of this meeting was however, return to business as usual. The leaked and released on internet. On 7 soldiers were confined to their barracks February, Bangladesh government banned and under close supervision of the army. websites like YouTube and eSnips from the The BDR was stripped of heavy weaponry country without giving any reason. It was like machine guns and mortars.10 alleged that the ban was imposed due to this leaked conversation. Notably, any Almost immediately after the mutiny, the news regarding the censorship was not government argued that the general reported in the Bangladeshi media. Five amnesty did not include those accused of days after the ban, government lifted it on committing crime during the mutiny. On 28 12 March14. The significance of the February, the government moved to setup a special tribunal for quick prosecution of those involved. On 2 February, government 12 “Govt probe body recast,” The Daily Star, 3 filed charges against a thousand mutineers March 2009, although only six were identified by http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=78211 name11.
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