A group of former Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) personnel dismissed following the 2009 Pilkhana incident gathered in Dhaka Monday, demanding job reinstatement and release of those they say were wrongly imprisoned.
Protesters said they would launch a “March for Jamuna” if they are not granted an official meeting by 10 a.m. Tuesday.
Gathering under the banner “Justice for BDR,” the former border guards and families of jailed BDR members began the day with a rally at the Central Shaheed Minar. From there, they marched toward Shahbagh.
It wasn’t even a standoff at Shahbagh. The police put up a line, and the crowd just… went. They pushed the barricade aside like it was nothing and just took the street. In a matter of seconds, they owned the whole intersection.
Many participants claimed that the 2009 mutiny at Pilkhana was used to frame innocent personnel.
“I had no part in the violence,” said one dismissed member. “But I was still removed from service. I’ve been waiting 15 years. I want my job back.”
Another said, “We support punishment for those responsible. But thousands were wrongly accused, jailed, and dismissed without proper trial.”
Protesters described the legal actions taken after the mutiny as broad and unjust. They alleged that the then-government had targeted BDR members through mass cases, labeling the events as a nationwide rebellion.
Police later removed the demonstrators from Shahbagh. The group then relocated in front of the National Museum, where they announced the next steps of their protest.
“We’ve been told we might get a meeting tomorrow,” one protester said. “But if we don’t, we will start marching toward the Jamuna.”
The protesters are sticking to their three core demands: they want their fired colleagues to get their jobs back, their friends who they say are innocent freed from jail, and a complete do-over on the decisions made after the Pilkhana tragedy.
But as of Monday night, their demands were met with a wall of silence from both the government and the police.
