Pro-Government Militias
Documentation for Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB)
May 6, 2004 Agence France Presse -- English
Jan. 23, 2005 New York Times
Because he swore his main enemy was a .. still dangerous group of leftist marauders known as the Purbo Banglar Communist Party, Bangla Bhai gained the support of the local police -- until the central government, worried that Bangla Bhai's band might be getting out of control, ordered his arrest in late May. The Bangladeshi government's arrest warrant doesn't seem to have made much difference, although for now Bangla Bhai refrains from public appearances. ..
Communists are just one target .. Most attacks have been carried out against either members of religious minorities -- Hindus, Christians and Buddhists -- or moderate Muslims. One of the most vulnerable communities is that of the Ahmadiyya,...The permissiveness of at least some within the Bangladeshi government and the police in allowing violent groups like Bangla Bhai's to pursue their agendas has only increased the political legitimacy of such groups.
Aug. 1, 2005 Defense & Foreign Affairs' Strategic Policy
Aug. 25, 2005 Hindustan Times
March 3, 2006 BBC Monitoring South Asia
Bangla Bhai was allegedly sheltered by several ruling BNP lawmakers, and carried out operations under the direct backing of the local police administration. (...)
Eating its own words, the government on 23 February last year banned the JMJB and JMB, accusing Abdur Rahman and Bangla Bhai of carrying out bomb attacks and killings to create anarchy in the country.
March 19, 2006 BBC Monitoring International Reports
The revelation by the government on 9 March 2006 that JMB had been responsible for the attacks against Dhaka University Prof .. and Rajshahi University Prof ... in 2004 opens a new chapter in addressing these human rights abuses, said the statement. "However, it also highlights the government's unexplained failure so far to fully investigate these and other attacks against human rights defenders and to bring those involved in the attacks to justice," it added
Oct. 25, 2006 The Press Trust of India
... the International Crisis Group (ICG) ...Stating that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party government has denied this, the Brussels-based think-tank in its latest report said ..the ruling BNP has been in power with the support of religious parties like Jamaat-e-Islami ..The opposition Awami League, ... has "good grounds for its complaints of victimisation",.."The principal beneficiary of these messy political equations has been the increasingly influential Islamist fringe", led by the Jamaat and extending to the violently militant Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh and Jamaat-ul- Mujahideen Bangladesh.
Nov. 7, 2006 Guardian
With the government under pressure from western powers, leaders of these terrorist groups were arrested and tried after two judges were killed in a suicide bomb attack in August 2005. Six, found guilty in May 2006, are due to be executed. Amnesty International has protested at the haste with which this is being carried out, since it suspects that the government wants to silence those it indulged until the recent past.
Feb. 5, 2007 BBC Monitoring South Asia
Oct. 7, 2016 Wikipedia. “Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh“.
They were patronized by some Bangladesh Nationalist Party government members to attack left-wing guerrilla movement by Purbo bangla Communist Party.
July 31, 2018 South Asia Terrorism Portal. “Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB).”
A certain section of the Bangladeshi media has indicated that the JMJB is an outgrowth of the Islamist militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). (...) As per its senior leader Maulana Abdur Rahman, who is also the chief of JMB, the outfit was formed in 1998. However, when the JMJB first came to limelight on April 1, 2004, it was also known by other names like Mujahidin Alliance Council, Islami Jalsha and Muslim Raksha Mujahideen Oikya Parishad. (...)
The JMJB reportedly has a three-tier organisation. The first tier of the outfit consists of activists called Ehsar who are recruited on a full-time basis and act at the behest of the higher echelons. The second tier, known as Gayeri Ehsar, has over 100,000 part-time activists. The third tier involves those who indirectly co-operate with the JMJB. (...)
The JMJB created strong bases mostly in northwest Bangladesh, in the districts of Rajshahi, Satkhira, Naogaon, Bagerhat, Jessore, Chittagong, Joypurhat, Natore, Rangpur, Bogra, Chittagong, and Khulna. It has allegedly spread its network to most Madrassas (seminaries) and other educational institutions in these districts. (...)
Reports indicated that the JMJB is supported by certain members of the ruling Bangladesh National Party (BNP). The former Deputy Minister for Land, Ruhul Kuddus Talukder Dulu, was allegedly linked to the outfit. The first rally of the JMJB was reportedly addressed by Bagmara's BNP Joint Secretary, Besharat Ullah, indicating the degree of support that the vigilante outfit enjoys within the ruling coalition. Media reports also indicated that the JMJB is akin to JMB that fought with the police from a secret training camp at Khetlal in Jaipurhat district in August 2003. (...)
The JMJB chief Maulana Rahman is known to have visited Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Afghanistan. He has allegedly secured help from Saudi charities to build some mosques and seminaries, from where the group is known to operate. (…)Regarding the sources of income, Bangla Bhai was reported to have said, "People from all rungs of society are generously paying us funds, no-one is pressurised for money. If someone happily makes a donation, there's no problem." (...)
Bangla Bhai on occasions claimed that JMJB commands the strength of 300000 activists across the country.