BANGLADESH is no stranger to mutinies, coups or counter-coups. But on the morning of February 25, the nation woke up to any government’s worst nightmare. To make things a bit worse than usual, the shock followed an overwhelming election victory for the government less than 60 days ago.
Over 5,000-6,000 personnel of the Bangladesh Rifles, the border security guard, laid siege to their own Pilkhana headquarters at Dhanmondi in the heart of Dhaka. They attacked their senior officers, killing them indiscriminately and holding several hundreds of others hostage.
During the celebration of Rifles Week 2009, Prime Minister Hasina Wajed addressed the force on February 24. The next morning, at a meeting with director-general Shakeel Ahmed, a sudden altercation broke out between senior officers and the guards present in the Darbar Hall. It was an argument of sorts, with a jawan being admonished for his misdemeanour on the previous morning. All hell broke loose. Within minutes the rebels, who had machine-guns, light machine guns, mortars, anti-tank rifles, armoured vehicles, and rocket launchers, seized control and took positions at the five gates of Pilkhana and the Rifles Square Market.
