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,[3][4][5] shooting by death squads,[6] and rape.

[7] The Rakkhi Bahini has been condemned by many academics and journalists, including Ghulam Murshid who compared it with the Gestapo,[8] and Anthony Mascarenhas who said that it was a "gang of hoodlums little different from the Nazi Brown shirts.

[10][11] 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.

[14] 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.

[dubious – discuss] 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 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.

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.

Without any discussion in the cabinet, which members were concerned about the stages of liberation war he himself gave the responsibility of forming the force to Major General S. S. Uban who was a recruit of CIA in 60s and now working as the IG of RAW.

[17]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.

[1] Mascarenhas also records the statement of Major General Abul Manzoor, that numerous military personnel were killed by Rakkhi Bahini terming them as Razakars or collaborators.

Article 8A granted officers of the Rakkhi Bahini the power to arrest without warrant any person they reasonably suspect of having committed a cognizable offence under any law.

[24] Article 3 of the act says, No suit, prosecution, or other legal proceedings shall be against any member of the Bahini for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this order or rule made there under.

[10][21] After the coup, members of Rakkhi Bahini who were deployed all around the country escaped from their camps and houses in fear of mob-violence, as the people were very angry with them.

[26] After the death of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the force was absorbed in Bangladesh Army after the "Jatiyo Rokkhi Bahini Absorption Act, 1975 came into effect.

[citation needed] Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini had a complete table of organization which was circulated on 8 March 1972 by a gazette notification.

In reality, the Rakkhi Bahini was under the direct control of the prime minister's office and attached to the local Awami League units.

The zonal headquarters building in the Bhatiary of Chittagong and lands in Giltala of Khulna, Bateshwar of Sylhet, Bogra and in Mirpur of Dhaka.

[22] The Rakkhi Bahini committed various human rights abuses, including extrajudicial killing,[3][4][5] forced disappearances,[30] shooting by death squads,[6] and rape.

"[10] Anthony Mascarenhas describes the activities of Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini in his book Bangladesh: A Legacy of Blood, he writes: The Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini, which roughly translated means National Security Force, was an elite para-military force whose members had to take oaths of personal loyalty to Mujib.

[22] On 17 March 1975, agitated Jasad supporters tried to set up a barricade in front of the residence of the Home Minister Muhammad Mansur Ali after the rally.

JASAD decided to form a rally towards Home Minister Mansoor Ali's house and surround it as a counter to that incident on 17 March.

[22] The rally that started from Paltan was forwarding to the Home Minister's house but the Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini opened brush-fire and at least 50 JASAD activists were killed on the spot.

[31] During the regime of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman thousands of youths were killed due to the suspicion of having connection with JASAD by Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini.

[4] Among them a leader of Bangladesh Krishok League central committee and a teacher of Nawabganj High School Siddiqur Rahman Khan was killed on 10 October 1972.

On 17 September 1973 JASAD Student's League leader Bablu, Robi, Ebadat Ali, Motaleb, Kalu and many other were killed in daylight by Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini.

Former prime minister Moudud Ahmed believes that because Shahjahan allegedly belonged to the student wing of the Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal, an opposition political party, the Rakkhi Bahini killed him and secretly disposed of his body.

[40] The court held that the Rakkhi Bahini version of events was "a pure concoction" that "demonstrates complete disregard of the law of the country.

Human Rights Watch states that institutionalized violence committed by the Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini, established the culture of impunity and widespread prevalence of abuses by security forces in independent Bangladesh.

[47] Pro-Awami columnist[48] Syed Badrul Ahsan defends its actions, but acknowledges "it would have been more effective and effectual, more properly indoctrinated in the spirit of the 1971 war, history would have been different.