The Mujib Bahini, initially called the Bangladesh Liberation Force (BLF), was an politico-armed force formed during the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

to fight against

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in 1971. The force was mainly composed of activists drawn from the

Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...

and its student front, the

Chhatra League Bangladesh Chhatra League, simply Chhatra League (), is the student wing of the political party, Bangladesh Awami League, founded by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on 4 January 1948. The organisation is banned and listed as a terrorist organisation in B ...

. At its height, it had reportedly 10,000 members. It was organised with the active assistance of Major General Sujan Singh Uban of the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

and Research and Analysis Wing. Serajul Alam Khan and Sheikh Fazlul Haque Mani, Tofael Ahmed and Abdur Razzaq were the organizers of this force.

1971 War of Independence

Mujib Bahini's exact involvement in the war is disputed, with Zafrullah Chowdhury stating, "The Mujib Bahini did not fight the liberation war." In 2014, A. K. Khandker was sued for accusing the Mujib Bahini of

hooliganism Hooliganism is disruptive or unlawful behavior such as rioting, bullying and vandalism, often in connection with crowds at sporting events. A hooligan is a person that engages in illicit reckless behaviors and is a public nuisance. Etymology ...

and

looting Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...

during the war in his book in his book ''1971: Bhetore Baire''. Professor Serajul Islam Choudhury of

Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (), also known as Dhaka University (DU), is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 1921, it is the oldest active university in the country. The University of Dhaka was founded in 1921 ...

opined that four unnamed leaders of Mujib Bahini were more successful at creating a rift between

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), also known by the honorific Bangabandhu, was a Bangladeshi politician, revolutionary, statesman and activist who was the founding president of Bangladesh. As the leader of Bangl ...

and

Tajuddin Ahmad Tajuddin Ahmad (23 July 1925 – 3 November 1975) was a Bangladeshi politician. He led the Provisional Government of Bangladesh, 1st Government of Bangladesh as its Prime Minister of Bangladesh, prime minister during the Bangladesh Liberation W ...

than

Khandaker Mushtaq Ahmed Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad (; 27 February 1919 – 5 March 1996) was a Bangladeshi politician. He was the Ministry of Commerce (Bangladesh), Minister of Commerce in the third Mujib Rahman ministry under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and assumed the Presi ...

, creating difficulties for Ahmad.

After 1971

After the

of 1971, the Mujib Bahini was merged with the auxiliary

Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini The Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini () was a Bangladeshi paramilitary force formed in 1972 by the Sheikh Mujibur Rahman government. Initially formed to curb 1972-1975 Bangladesh insurgency, an insurgency and maintain law and order, the force became involve ...

, which became infamous for its own human rights abuses.

Recollection of former members

Zainal Abedin, a former student leader and a freedom fighter who crossed over to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

in 1971 and joined the Mujib Bahini, reminiscing about how the Indian handlers and RAW agents treated them Some former members were rewarded by the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...

and decided to become Indian citizens themselves. Bimal Pramanik, the director of Centre for Research in India-Bangladesh Relations, was a former sector commander of Mujib Bahini. He fled Bangladesh in the aftermath of Mujib's assassination in 1975 and shifted to

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

in 1976; he has been living in the city since then.

References

{{Liberation of Bangladesh Mukti Bahini Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini Memorials to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Research and Analysis Wing activities in Pakistan

1971 War of Independence

After 1971

Recollection of former members

See also

References