Mukti Bahini
| Mukti Bahini | |
|---|---|
| |
Mukti Bahini Flag | |
| Leaders | General M. A. G. Osmani, Commander-in-Chief Major General M. A. Rab, Chief of Staff Air Vice Marshal A K Khandker, Deputy Chief of Staff |
| Dates of operation | March–December 1971 |
| Groups | Bangladesh Army ∟ K Force ∟ S Force ∟ Z Force Bangladesh Navy Bangladesh Air Force Bangladesh Rifles Bangladesh Ansar Bangladesh Police Special Guerrilla Forces ∟ Gono Bahini ∟ Mujib Bahini ∟ Kader Bahini ∟ Hemayet Bahini ∟ Afsar Bahini ∟ Baten Bahini ∟ Akbar Bahini ∟ Khalil Bahini ∟ Crack Platoon |
| Motives | Independence of Bangladesh |
| Headquarters | Mujibnagar, Meherpur (de jure) Calcutta, India (de facto) |
| Active regions | East Pakistan |
| Ideology | Bengali nationalism Republicanism Separatism Factions: Socialism |
| Political position | Big tent |
| Part of | Provisional Government of Bangladesh |
| Allies | India Soviet Union |
| Opponents | State opponents
Non-state opponents |
| Wars | Bangladeshi War of Independence |
| War flag | |
The Mukti Bahini, initially called the Mukti Fauj, also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was a big tent armed guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the East Pakistani military personnel, paramilitary personnel and civilians during the Bangladesh Liberation War that turned East Pakistan into Bangladesh in 1971.
On 7 March 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the undisputed leader of then East Pakistan, issued a call to the people of East Pakistan to prepare themselves for an all-out struggle. Later that evening resistance demonstrations began, and the West Pakistani military began a full-scale attack with Operation Searchlight killing thousands in the early hours of 26 March 1971, which continued through May 1971. Before his arrest on 26 March, East Pakistani leaders declared the independence of Bangladesh, and ordered the people to engage in all-out war.
A formal military leadership of the resistance was created in April 1971 under the Provisional Government of Bangladesh. The military council was headed by General M. A. G. Osmani and eleven sector commanders. The Bangladesh Armed Forces were established on 4 April 1971. The most prominent divisions of the Mukti Bahini were the Z Force led by Major Ziaur Rahman, the K Force led by Major Khaled Mosharraf and the S Force led by Major K M Shafiullah. Awami League student leaders formed subgroups, including the Mujib Bahini, the Kader Bahini and Hemayet Bahini. The Communist Party of Bangladesh, led by Comrade Moni Singh, and activists from the National Awami Party also operated several guerrilla battalions.
Using guerrilla warfare tactics, the Mukti Bahini secured control over large parts of the Bengali countryside. It conducted successful "ambush and sabotage" campaigns, and included the nascent Bangladesh Air Force and the Bangladesh Navy. The Mukti Bahini received training and weapons from India, where people in West Bengal shared a common Bengali ethnic and linguistic heritage with East Pakistan.
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, the Mukti Bahini became part of the Bangladesh-India Allied Forces. It was instrumental in securing the Surrender of Pakistan and the liberation of Dhaka and other cities in December 1971.