Asif’s militia in police uniforms: Plan to suppress AL’s programs by arming July fighters

Staff Correspondent

Dhaka, 9 November 2025 | The interim government is now arming the most courageous and capable ‘fighters’ of the movement to take to the streets against the political program of the Awami League, which was ousted from power in the student-militant movement in July. Several thousand youths from the 9,000-member private militia formed under the orders of Youth and Sports and Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Advisor Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan are being deployed in police uniforms to suppress the protests announced by the Awami League on November 10-13.

This sensational information has emerged from a confidential 9-page “Special Security Plan” document of the Bangladesh Police obtained by Northeast News.

According to the ‘auxiliary force’ document in police uniform, a total of 6,829 ‘police’ personnel will be deployed in 9 sectors of Dhaka Metropolitan City. Of these, hundreds of youths—members of the trained Auxiliary Force formed under the orders of Asif Mahmud—will be in the field wearing the standard uniform of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) along with riot gear, raincoats and weapons. These youths have already taken up positions in different areas of Dhaka.

The document states that 49 police station areas will be divided into 9 sectors, with platoons formed in each sector. Each platoon will be led by a police officer, but a large portion of the members will be private militias. The entire operation will be coordinated through wireless commands from the control room.

• A Deputy Commissioner (DC) and an Assistant Deputy Commissioner (ADC) will sit in the control room and give instructions to the field platoons through the police wireless system.
• Hourly reports will be sent to police headquarters.
• Important information will go directly to the DMP Commissioner, Additional Commissioner and Crime Operations Chief.
• Police vans will be on standby for injured ‘police’ members.

Weapons and preparations

The document states that everyone, including the armed forces, will carry weapons and ammunition. “Full coordination is essential for operational success,” it says, adding that cooperation between field commanders is mandatory.

Weaponization of July Militants:

The new strategy of the student government says that a section of the student militants who were on the streets to overthrow the government in the July movement, who played the most courageous role in confronting the police and the Awami League, was organized under the name of ‘Youth Development Training’ and ‘Volunteer Force’ and formed a 9,000-member militia. It is led by Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan. This training, salary and allowance are all being provided from the 2300 crore taka allocated for youth development for IT and freelancing during the previous Awami League government. The responsibility of coordinating the allocated money in the Youth Development Department is being handled by a close associate of Student Advisor Asif Mahmud, without whose permission no money is allocated for any project.

[BDD has obtained several documents and information on this matter. After further investigation, a report on the “scam” of the money allocated by the Youth Directorate will be published in BDD]

Members of this force conducted a “mobilization drill” yesterday (November 8). Distribution of their police uniforms has begun. Sources in the security forces say that these youths may attack Awami League supporters in the name of maintaining law and order.

Awami League protests and ICT verdict

The Awami League has called for protests in Dhaka from November 10-13 to protest the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) verdict against Sheikh Hasina. The interim government has called for a combined police-militia force to quell the protests, calling them “violent.”

Political analysts say the student government is arming the July protesters and using them as a tool to suppress political opponents. This is endangering the democratic process. “The deployment of private militias in police uniforms is a license for state violence,” said one security expert.

The government’s silence: No statement was received from Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan or the DMP Commissioner on this matter. However, the police documents are clear – the main goal of the operation is the success, and that is to prevent Awami League leaders and workers from taking to the streets, and to resist as many party leaders and workers as possible with weapons, so that they do not dare to take to the field again.

Northeast News is issuing a public health warning against this plan. What is going to happen on the streets of Dhaka from November 10-13 raises questions—is this a matter of preserving peace, or a new chapter in political vendetta?