Hemayet Bahini ( bn, হেমায়েত বাহিনী; The Hemayet Force) was a guerrilla militia force of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...

in the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali ...

of 1971. This small force was known by the name of its leader and organizer Mohammad Hemayet Uddin

Bir Bikrom Bir Bikrom ( bn, বীর বিক্রম, lit=Valiant hero, translit=) is the third highest gallantry award in Bangladesh. Like the other gallantry awards, this was introduced immediately after the Bangladeshi Liberation War. Bir Bikrom was ...

. The area of operation of Hemayet Bahini was the Faridpur zone. Although Hemayet Uddin was a

Havildar Havildar or havaldar ( Hindustani: or (Devanagari), (Perso-Arabic)) is a rank in the Indian, Pakistani and Nepalese armies, equivalent to sergeant. It is not used in cavalry units, where the equivalent is daffadar. Like a British sergeant, ...

of the East Bengal Regiment of

Pakistan army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...

, his force was composed mostly of local youth. This guerrilla force used the riverine terrain to its advantage and disrupted the movement of Pakistan armed forces in the region. Hemayet Bahini was very popular among the Bengalis and stories about their work reached mythic proportions. Hemayet Uddin, the leader, was affectionately addressed by the

Mukti bahini The Mukti Bahini ( bn, মুক্তিবাহিনী, translates as 'freedom fighters', or liberation army), also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was the guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military, paramilitary ...

headquarters as ''Himu''. After the war, he was decorated by the gallantry award

and was awarded the military rank of

Subedar Subedar is a rank of junior commissioned officer in the Indian Army; a senior non-commissioned officer in the Pakistan Army, and formerly a Viceroy's commissioned officer in the British Indian Army. History ''Subedar'' or ''subadar'' was t ...

. In 2020, the Government of Bangladesh built a museum in Gopalganj District dedicated to Hemayet Bahini and its contribution to Bangladesh Liberation war.

References

{{reflist Bangladesh Liberation War Religion-based civil wars Guerrilla organizations Paramilitary forces of Bangladesh